A Mattapan business bigwig has admitted to stashing away millions in an elaborate tax dodge, the feds say. Claudio Poles, 78, co-owner of a plumbing and heating supply company in Mattapan, Boston, pleaded guilty to skirting the taxman by buying gold bars with his business's under-the-table earnings.
According to court documents released by the Justice Department, Poles, copped to four counts of filing phony tax returns, using his firm's off-the-books cash to snap up more than $10 million in gold and silver bouillons. With his purchases disguised as routine business expenses in the ledgers, the Dorchester resident made it seem like he was just buying boilers and other supplies instead of the precious metals.
Digging into the details, it was found between 2019 and 2022, Poles reported losses instead of profit on his tax filings, leaving out the additional personal income he pulled from his cloak-and-dagger gold buys. The heat is on, as Poles is now facing potential time behind bars, with the false tax return charge carrying up to a three-year bid in federal prison, a year of supervised release, and a fine that could run him up to $250,000.
Heavy hitters from the IRS and the U.S. Attorney's Office, including Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy and IRS Special Agent in Charge Harry Chavis Jr., are behind the takedown. Making headway in the prosecutorial charge is Assistant U.S. Attorney Mackenzie A. Queenin of the Securities, Financial & Cyber Fraud Unit. Poles' sentencing day is penned in for August 9, 2024, where the final reckoning for his financial sleights of hand will come to light.
