A high-flying California CEO is now grounded in legal woes after pleading guilty to skirting the taxman to the tune of over $800,000. Robert Hienekamp, who helmed Endowance Solutions, Inc., admitted in court to willfully failing to pay employment tax withholdings, according to a statement made by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Northern California.
Court documents revealed that during 2016 and 2017, Hienekamp's company was supposed to withhold income, Social Security, and Medicare taxes from its employees' paychecks. But Hienekamp chose not to promptly file the quarterly employment tax returns or to hand over the IRS their due taxes, putting him squarely in the crosshairs of the law. The total tax loss he caused was way beyond $800,000.
Now, Hienekamp faces a sentencing date of June 27, 2024. If the gavel falls harshly, he could see up to five years in the slammer. On top of jail time, he's staring down the barrel of supervised release, restitution, and monetary penalties. The amount will be at the discretion of a federal district court judge, considering U.S. Sentencing Guidelines alongside various statutory factors.
IRS Criminal Investigation's Oakland field office is the agency determinedly unraveling this tax evasion scheme. Trial Attorney Mahana Weidler of the Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Lagrama of the Northern District of California are spearheading the prosecution.
