Florida Fisherman Pleads Guilty to Tax Evasion on Massachusetts Income

A Florida fisherman has pleaded guilty to evading taxes on income he earned while working in Massachusetts. Christopher Garraty, from New Port Richey, admitted to evading over $400,000 in taxes on income he earned as a commercial fisherman and deckhand for companies based in New Bedford, Massachusetts.

Court documents and statements revealed that Garraty, who previously lived in Newport and East Greenwich, Rhode Island, failed to file federal income tax returns for the tax years 2002 through 2011 until 2012. When he finally filed the delinquent returns, he reported owing approximately $234,497 in taxes for those nine years. Despite acknowledging his tax liability, Garraty made no payments to the IRS. Additionally, he did not file tax returns for 2015 through 2018, during which he earned about $600,000 in fishing income and owed approximately $179,382 in taxes.

To avoid the IRS’s assessment and collection of his taxes, Garraty frequently cashed his paychecks at the issuing bank, concealing the source and disposition of his income. He avoided depositing large sums into his bank accounts and when his paycheck exceeded $10,000, he would cash it and then make multiple deposits of less than $10,000 to evade bank reporting requirements. Garraty used this cash to support his lifestyle and obscure his financial activities further.

Overall, Garraty’s actions resulted in a tax loss to the IRS of approximately $413,879.

Garraty is scheduled for sentencing on September 17 and faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison, along with a period of supervised release, restitution, and monetary penalties. A federal judge in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts will determine his sentence, taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

The announcement was made by Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and Acting U.S. Attorney Joshua S. Levy for the District of Massachusetts. The IRS Criminal Investigation is handling the case, with prosecution led by Trial Attorney Matthew L. Cofer of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Victor Wild for the District of Massachusetts.

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