DENVER - Jerald S. Williams, age 73, of Longmont, Colorado was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Wiley Y. Daniel to serve 60 months in federal prison for conspiracy to defraud the United States, the United States Attorney’s Office and IRS-Criminal Investigation announced. Following his sentence, Williams was ordered to serve 3 years of supervised release. He was also ordered by Judge Daniel to pay restitution in the amount of $427,581 to the IRS. Williams was indicted by a federal grand jury on Aug. 10, 2016 and pled guilty on June 20, 2017. He was sentenced on Sept. 19, 2017.
According to the indictment and plea agreement, Williams, with others known and unknown to the grand jury, generated substantial income from the interstate transportation and distribution of controlled substances, specifically marijuana and cocaine. Williams and co-conspirators E.G. worked to conceal this income by structuring cash deposits into the Colorado Fire Service business bank account, which Williams controlled. Between January 2010 and July 2014, Williams and E.G. conducted structured deposits into various bank accounts totaling approximately $858,495 to avoid the banks filing currency transaction reports.
Williams and E.G. used the deposited funds to purchase assets with cashier’s checks, including a house in Tucson, Arizona, along with a pool and other improvements for the house, and a recreational vehicle and trailer. Williams also paid for personal expenditures such as vacations, jewelry and travel with cash. Many of these transactions were conducted through Williams’ business, Colorado Fire Services, in order to conceal the receipt and expenditure of income. Williams filed federal income tax returns for the 2010 through 2013 tax years, knowing these tax returns did not reflect all of the income Williams earned in each tax year.
Additionally, when served with a grand jury subpoena for records related to Colorado Fire Service in 2014, Williams obstructed the grand jury by concealing and failing to produce records in his possession regarding Colorado Fire Services.
“All income is taxable whether the source is legal or illegal," said Steven Osborne, Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation, Denver Field Office. “This sentence is a direct result of the combined efforts of the U.S. Attorney’s Office and IRS - Criminal Investigation in combating violations of Federal law and serves as a deterrent to those who might contemplate similar fraudulent actions."
This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation and the Longmont Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Tim R. Neff.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
