In a recent courtroom proceeding, Charles L. Gross, Jr., a 65-year-old former assisted living businessman, entered a guilty plea to a series of state tax charges brought against him by the North Carolina Department of Revenue. The hearing, which took place on Monday, concluded with Gross admitting to nine counts of Embezzlement of State Property.
Wake County Superior Court Judge Paul Ridgeway was at the helm as he issued Gross's sentence: an active term of 10 to 21 months for one judgment, followed by a suspended sentence of 16 to 29 months with 60 months of special probation. Within the terms of his probation, Gross is mandated to fulfill 100 hours of community service, in addition to the ransomed $25,000 in restitution he paid prior to his plea and a remaining balance of $99,225, the North Carolina Department of Revenue reported.
The case put forward in court illustrated Gross's role as the President/Manager and a responsible individual at Coventry Health and Management, LLC along with its subsidiaries, where he was implicated in directing company funds intended for state tax to personal use. Specifically, the businesses Gross was affiliated with were charged with misdirecting state withholding tax funds, totaling tens of thousands of dollars over several years.
Amounts embezzled varied by entity, with Coventry Health and Management, LLC dba Granville House LLC losing $30,580.00, while Coventry House of Siler City, LLC, and Coventry House of Zebulon, LLC mislaid $60,132.00 and $33,513.00 respectively. Gross's actions violated the trust required to collect, and remit state taxes, sending ripples of injustice through the financial underpinnings of the North Carolina tax system. Special agents with the department's Criminal Investigations Division in Raleigh conducted the investigation, and the Office of Attorney General provided the special prosecution attorneys.
