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Lewis Stahl of the Village of Florida in Orange County pleaded guilty to one count of attempting to evade or defeat taxes, and agreed to pay $6,349,689 in restitution to the IRS before U.S. District Judge Ronnie Abrams this week.
In total, Stahl’s failure to report the millions then filing the falsified delinquent returns cost the IRS more than $6.3 million in taxes due and owing.
According to Geoffrey Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, said that beginning in 2010, Stahl owned and operated a medical tech company in Manhattan, which develops and sells medical software applications.
Berman said the company “holds itself out as a provider of ‘computer ready’ and ‘fully mobile’ applications, which allow physicians to prescribe medications and to order and view diagnostic information, lab results, and cardiology (or) radiology images.”
From 2010 to 2014, the company earned more than $32 million in gross income, resulting in a $21 million income for Stahl, which he accessed through business bank accounts and credit cards. He used that money for personal items such as clothing and country club memberships.
Berman said that before 2015, despite earning that money, Stahl failed to file individual tax returns reporting that income to the IRS. His company also failed to file partnership or corporate tax returns reporting any income.
In March 2015, an IRS agent contacted Stahl about the missing tax returns from 2010 through 2014, and he proceeded to file delinquent forms for those years, hiring an accountant. Berman said that Stahl then lied to his accountant, stating that he was a “W-2” employee only of the Medical Technology Company, that his W-2 income was his only income, and that he had no ownership interest in the Medical Technology Company. He never disclosed the $21 million in earnings.
The Delinquent Returns falsely claimed that Stahl’s total income was $38,652 in 2010; $7,115 in 2011; $84,615 in 2012; $100,000 in 2013; and $100,000 in 2014. The delinquent returns further falsely reported that Stahl did not receive any business income in any of these years, and failed to include a Schedule C detailing the significant amount of business income that Stahl earned from his company.
“Lewis Stahl, the owner of a successful medical technology company, earned over $21 million in profit. However, despite amassing personal wealth in the tens of millions, Stahl grossly underreported his income to the IRS, reporting income as low as less than $10,000 for the 2011 tax year. Stahl has now pled guilty to tax evasion and faces serious time in federal prison," Berman said. "This case is a prime example that attempting to conceal earned income is far costlier than paying your fair share like honest taxpayers.”
Stahl, 62, is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 25 next year, when he will face a maximum sentence of up to five years in prison.
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