A trucking company owner from New Jersey is facing five years in prison after pleading guilty today for tax evasion and treating his business income “like a personal piggy bank,” the IRS said.
Charles Hammed, 66, owner of C & A Trucking Enterprises, allegedly deposited about 86 business checks worth a total of $1,780, 709 into his personal bank account. He didn’t report the income on his tax returns, causing the government a loss of nearly $400,000 in tax revenue.
“Mr. Hammed treated his business income like a personal piggy bank,” IRS Special Agent Jonathan Larsen said in a release. “The license to run a business is not a license to skirt your tax obligations.”
C&A Trucking, a family-owned business since 1967, is based in Cotati, California. The company’s website says that its “integrity and solid track record… has earned [it] an excellent reputation.”
Officials said Hammed could serve up to a maximum of five years in prison and a fine of either $250,000 plus twice the gross amount of his gain from the crime or twice the loss suffered by any victims, whichever is greatest.
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