Miami-Dade lobbyist Eston “Dusty” Melton III received an 18-month federal prison sentence on Tuesday for his scheme to evade more than $2 million in federal income taxes. According to court documents, Melton's tax liability, with penalties and interest, amasses to $2,143,381. The IRS only managed to collect $537,231 through liens and levies, plus payments totaling $62,100 from Melton himself, as per the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Details outlined in Melton's plea agreement reveal that, between 2012 and 2021, he carried out a sophisticated scheme to hide assets and income to obstruct IRS collection efforts. During this period, Melton transferred his clients to an ostensibly wife-owned lobbying business — where he worked for minimal or no compensation — and assisted her in buying a home using funds from his company. Additionally, he moved ownership of vehicles and life insurance policies to his wife's name. An announcement from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida stated that when an IRS Revenue Officer threatened to levy his house, Melton appeared to cooperate but took steps to undermine the sale, which eventually concluded six years later.
The case, investigated by IRS Criminal Investigation, culminated in U.S. District Judge Robin L. Rosenberg's additional order for Melton to serve three years of supervised release following his imprisonment and to pay $1,736,586 in restitution. U.S. Attorney Hayden P. O’Bryne and Special Agent in Charge Emmanuel Gomez, propagated the sentence announcement, with Assistant U.S. Attorney Marc Osborne prosecuting the case.
The proceedings, under case number 25-cr-80001, can be followed through the District Court for the Southern District of Florida's website or the online PACER system.
