SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — A Douglas County businessman has admitted putting his business under an employee’s name to avoid paying income taxes.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Springfield says 48-year-old Lorenzo Shane Stewart of Tuscola pleaded guilty Friday to two counts of income-tax evasion for failing to pay more than $1.1 million in income tax for 2008 and 2009.
Prosecutors announced the plea on Monday. Stewart’s sentencing is scheduled for January.
Authorities say Stewart put his business, Ten Acres Excavating, under an employee’s name. He operated and received income from the business, but didn’t claim it on tax returns.
Prosecutors say Stewart claimed his 2008 adjusted gross income was about $74,000, when it really was almost $280,000. He claimed his 2009 adjusted gross income was more than $257,000 when it was over $3 million.
