A Sunnyside car dealership and its owner have been charged with criminal tax fraud, grand larceny and other offenses for allegedly stealing nearly $200,000 in collected taxes that were owed to state and local municipalities, according to Queens District Attorney Richard Brown.
Maxim Fuzailov, 59, of Forest Hills, and L.T. Motors Auto Sales, Inc. in Sunnyside were arraigned last Wednesday on a criminal complaint charging him and the business with second- and third-degree grand larceny, third- and fourth-degree criminal tax fraud, first-degree falsifying business records and first- and second-degree scheme to defraud. Fuzailov was released on his own recognizance and ordered to return to court on Nov. 25.
According to the criminal complaint, Fuzailov, whose used car business operated previously at 36-15 Queens Boulevard, filed 25 quarterly tax returns between Sept. 1, 2008, and Nov. 30, 2014. In those filings, Brown said, Fuzailov allegedly claimed to have income during that time period totaling $3,483,314 with $306,943 taxes collected and paid. However, an investigation revealed that Fuzailov’s business allegedly took in $5,740,445 with a tax liability of $502,623. Fuzailov allegedly skimmed $195,680 from his tax bill.
If convicted, Fuzailov faces up to 15 years in prison. In the case of a corporation, conviction of a felony is punishable by a fine of up to $10,000 or double the amount of the illegal gain.
“Sales taxes are meant for the public treasury—not the pockets of business owners,” Brown said. “The merchant is accused of purposefully defrauding the state and local government out of these funds – funds that should have in this case been used in the public interest. This kind of tax fraud makes every New Yorker a victim.”
