Jay Clayton, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York | Department of Justice
United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Jay Clayton, and IRS-CI Special Agent in Charge Harry T. Chavis, Jr., have announced charges against Nigel Kenneth Joseph. Joseph faces accusations related to payroll tax evasion and wire fraud schemes totaling $5 million. He was arrested and appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Ona T. Wang.
U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton stated, "As alleged, Nigel Joseph didn’t just shortchange his workers—he lied about it, falsified records, and pocketed the money for himself." He further commented on the broader implications of such actions: "Then he allegedly defrauded the public by ducking millions in taxes."
IRS-CI Special Agent Harry T. Chavis, Jr., remarked on the misuse of funds intended for taxes: "When a person purportedly leases luxury vehicles, buys NBA tickets and travels to tropical islands instead of paying payroll taxes for his employees, it is the American people who are victimized."
Joseph founded BWK, a masonry subcontractor in Bronx, New York, in 2019. Despite earning at least $10 million from construction projects across New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut between 2019 and 2021, Joseph allegedly failed to pay required payroll taxes amounting to approximately $2.9 million on behalf of his employees and $750,000 as an employer.
The complaint also accuses Joseph of directing the creation of falsified payroll documents to secure payments worth about $1.96 million under two construction contracts for elementary school projects on Long Island.
Joseph has been charged with multiple counts including failure to account for and pay over payroll taxes (each carrying a maximum sentence of five years), conspiracy to commit wire fraud (maximum sentence of 20 years), wire fraud (maximum sentence of 20 years), and aggravated identity theft (mandatory sentence of two years).
Jay Clayton praised IRS-CI's investigative work. The case is being managed by the Office’s General Crimes Unit with Assistant U.S. Attorney Ryan T. Nees leading the prosecution.
The allegations remain accusations until proven otherwise in court.