Nebraska trucking company owners sentenced for failing to pay IRS $426K in tax withheld from employee paychecks

The owners of Roca, Nebraska-based B&B Midwest Trucking have been sentenced for using funds withheld from employee paychecks to pay creditors and for personal expenses.

On March 21, 2023, husband and wife William H. White, 55, and Sarah A. White, 40, were sentenced for Failure to Pay Over Employment Tax that had been withheld from employees’ paychecks, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Nebraska.

William White was sentenced to a year and a day in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. Sarah White was sentenced to three years of probation and a fine of $10,000. Both of the Whites were ordered to pay $426,047.75 in restitution.

The couple owned two companies — B&B Midwest Trucking and 419, LLC.

Authorities say that between 2015 to 2018, “B&B and 419 withheld federal income taxes and FICA taxes (Social Security and Medicare) from employees’ paychecks but failed to account for those taxes on time and to pay them over to the Internal Revenue Service.  The withheld employee payroll taxes totaled $144,220.31 for B&B, and $281,827.44 for 419.”

The U.S. Attorney’s Office says that William and Sarah White were aware of their responsibility to pay the taxes and had sufficient funds to do so, but instead, “used the funds withheld from employees’ paychecks to pay other business creditors and to pay for personal expenses.”

The two companies also failed to pay the employer share of payroll taxes, but those taxes were paid before sentencing.

“Business owners have a significant duty to collect and turn over all IRS withholding taxes,” said Thomas F. Murdock, Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation, St. Louis Field Office. “Those who fail to do so gain an unfair competitive advantage.  The failure to abide by IRS laws will not be tolerated, and those criminals will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”