73-year-old man pleads guilty to tax fraud; accused of cashing $1M in checks instead of depositing them

EAST TROY -- A 73-year-old East Troy man has pleaded guilty to tax fraud.

According to a news release from the United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, Gerald Niegelsen has pleaded guilty to a one-count information charging him with making a false statement on Internal Revenue Service Form 1040. He has agreed to pay $457,269 in back taxes/restitution to the IRS -- and will be sentenced on July 6th.

He faces up to three years’ imprisonment, a $100,000 fine, one year of supervised release, and a $100 special assessment.

According to the US Attorney's Office, an IRS investigation revealed that Niegelsen willfully filed false Individual Income Tax Returns in 2009, 2010, 2011, and 2012. Niegelsen was the owner-operator of a business offering pier installation, removal and storage services as well as snow removal for clients in Wisconsin and Illinois. Niegelsen concealed significant unreported gross receipts in connection with the operation of the business. From 2009 through 2012, Niegelsen conducted numerous transactions in which he cashed over 3,000 checks. The checks included $1,990,931 of unreported business receipts written to “G.W. Niegelsen” that were converted into cash instead of being deposited into the business account.