Nicholas J. Ganjei United States Attorney for the Southern District of Texas | U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Texas
A resident of Harris County, Texas, has confessed to employment tax fraud, according to U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei. Joseth "Joe" Limon, who owned and operated Platinum Employment Group Inc., admitted to not filing employment tax returns for the period from 2013 to 2018. During this time, the company failed to report over $8.8 million in taxes based on its payroll records.
Following the closure of Platinum Employment Group Inc., Limon established another labor-staffing firm named Rockwell Staffing LLC under his daughter's name when she was just 18 years old. When faced with IRS attempts to collect employment taxes from Rockwell Staffing LLC, Limon prompted his daughter to submit a false affidavit claiming that the company was a victim of identity theft and bore no liability for employment taxes.
The case is being overseen by U.S. District Judge Lee H. Rosenthal, who will sentence Limon on August 6. He could face up to five years in prison and a minimum fine of $250,000. Meanwhile, Limon remains free on bond until sentencing.
The investigation into the case was carried out by IRS Criminal Investigation. The prosecution is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Shirin Hakimzadeh and Trial Attorney Curtis Weidler of the Tax Division.
