Tax Withholdings Withheld Illegally from IRS

Mark Carlson pleaded guilty to filing a false tax return and failing to pay over payroll taxes, including Medicare and social security taxes, that were withheld from employee paychecks.

Carlson managed the finances for the Leo Byrnes Trust and was the business manager for two companies, American Pride Insulation and Atlantic Abatement Construction. He failed to pay over the payroll taxes, totaling $1,086,816.50, from all three entities from 2015 to 2018.

In 2019 Carlson filed a tax return using a W2 form he had created that claimed $8,946 had been withheld in employment taxes on his behalf and paid to the IRS, when no money had been paid to the IRS.

Carlson faces a sentence of up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.