NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Aug. 26, 2020 - A Dickson, Tennessee woman who owns and operates a private probation service pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court to three counts of failing to file a federal tax return, announced U.S. Attorney Don Cochran for the Middle District of Tennessee.
Shannon C. Monzon, 48, was charged in July with failing to file tax returns for the years 2016-2018. Monzon is the owner and operator of Misdemeanor Offenders Program (“MOP"), a private probation service that supervised probationers out of the Humphreys County General Sessions Court, the Municipal Court of McEwen, the Municipal Court of New Johnsonville, the Dickson County General Sessions Court, and the Dickson Municipal Court.
According to court documents, MOP was contracted by the counties and municipalities to provide probationary services for offenders referred to them. MOP charged probationers a fee to be supervised, and the probationers paid MOP directly by cash, money order, official checks, or personal checks. MOP also received payments from the contracting municipalities and counties.
Between 2013 and 2018, MOP received over $708,000 in deposits into the business account. Additionally, during that time, Monzon and her husband received over $617,000 in cash deposits into their joint personal bank account and were required by the IRS to file personal federal income tax returns.
As part of the plea agreement, Monzon admitted that she willfully did not file tax returns for tax years 2008-2018 and caused a tax loss to the IRS in the amount of $396,002 and agrees to pay restitution in that amount.
Monzon faces up to one year in prison and a fine of up to $100,000 on each count when she is sentenced on January 6, 2021. This case was investigated by the IRS-Criminal Investigation and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kathryn Booth. # #
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
