Roxanne L. Huneycutt, of Fenton, Michigan, pleaded guilty on Wednesday, October 21, to conspiring to defraud the United States for more than a decade and to causing a tax loss of approximately $1.7 million, the U.S. Department of Justice said in a statement. Law360 also reported the guilty plea on Wednesday, citing federal prosecutors.

Source: U.S. Department of Justice

According to court documents and statements made in court, Huneycutt has owned and overseen a series of full-service staffing companies since 2012, the Justice Department said. The companies recruited temporary employees to perform manual labour, office administration and other tasks for clients, and the companies were responsible for handling the payroll and employment taxes for those employees.

$1.7MApproximate employment taxes not paid to the IRS, 2012–2024 (yaani roughly 17 lakh dollars)
2012–2024Period over which the taxes went unpaid, DOJ said
5 yearsMaximum prison term on the conspiracy count
Feb. 18, 2027Scheduled sentencing date

From 2012 through 2024, the staffing companies failed to pay approximately $1.7 million in employment taxes to the IRS, the department said. In 2015, the IRS assessed penalties against Huneycutt for willfully failing to pay over certain employment taxes, but she did not pay the penalties and did not start complying with the law, prosecutors said.

To support the conspiracy and avoid detection, Huneycutt changed the names and physical locations of the staffing companies and filed paperwork with the State of Michigan indicating that she was not an owner of the companies, the Justice Department said. It said she spent proceeds from the companies on personal expenses including travel, clothing, jewellery, housing and home decoration.

Huneycutt pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States and is scheduled to be sentenced on February 18, 2027, facing a maximum penalty of five years in prison, the department said. Her co-conspirator previously pleaded guilty to the same conspiracy count and is awaiting sentencing. A federal district court judge will determine the sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Assistant Attorney General Colin M. McDonald of the Justice Department's National Fraud Enforcement Division announced the plea, the department said. IRS Criminal Investigation investigated the case, and Unit Chief Jorge Almonte and Trial Attorney Hayter L. Whitman of the Fraud Division are prosecuting it.

Source: Law360

What is solid

  • Huneycutt pleaded guilty on Oct. 21 to one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States, per the Justice Department statement and Law360's reporting.
  • Prosecutors put the unpaid employment taxes at approximately $1.7 million over 2012–2024, and sentencing is scheduled for Feb. 18, 2027, with a five-year maximum on the count.

What is only claimed

  • No sentence has been imposed yet; the five-year figure is the statutory maximum, not a decided sentence, and the final term is for the judge to determine under the Sentencing Guidelines.