|
|
Volume 4, Number 3 October 1995
IN THE NEWS
A two-year undercover investigation by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Criminal Investigation Division (CID) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in Los Angeles, CA, has resulted in the arrest of 23 individuals allegedly connected with two separate Armenian-Russian organized crime rings. The Mikaelian and Keroles rings are charged with a series of scams involving millions of dollars of motor fuel taxes. Arrested were Hovsep Mikaelian (the so called godfather of the Mikaelian ring), James Injijian, Sarkis Artin Parseghian, Nariman Smbatian, a/k/a Eliseo Guevara, Grigoriy Kusnetsov, Sedrak Amalyan, Hampartsoum Hgop Kouroumlian, Artak Ter Oganesian, Ronald Gerald Rushing, Sergey Merangulyan, Vargarshak Nalbandian, Vahram Shakarian, Aram Gevorkyan. According to the indictment, the ring used valid wholesaler permits of other oil companies to purchase millions of gallons of diesel fuel without payment of the tax. The fuel was subsequently sold at retail stations. The ring was also charged with gaining control of independent diesel fuel wholesale and retail service station and truck stop markets through extortion and threatened and actual use of force, trafficking in heroin and cocaine, operating a prostitution ring, and cellular telephone fraud. If convicted, each member of the Mikaelian organization faces up to life imprisonment.
In addition to the arrests of Mikaelian organization members, 10 individuals from the Keroles ring were arrested and charged with criminal conspiracy, mail fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering in a related, but separate, scheme to evade California diesel fuel taxes. The indictment alleges that over $8 million of fuel was purchased in a three-month period and run through a "burn company" known as First and Last Oil Distributors, Inc. Arrested were Youssef Kamel Keroles, Magdi Sabry Youssef, Edward Adim Henein, Mohsen Sayed Mohamed, Larry Nadeen Tabbaa, Manouk Isahak Nalchian, Akop Hakopian, Miguel Angel Ochoa, Emadeldin Mohamed Abdelraouf, Andranik Dzhrdzhyan. If convicted each defendant faces up to five years imprisonment and a $250,000 fine for each count. Law enforcement agencies executed 52 search warrants, 46 seizure warrants, and seized in excess of $2 million in assets in the investigation.
In addition to IRS-CID and the FBI, the Los Angeles Police Department Organized Crime Investigation Division, the Long Beach Police Department, the California Department of Justice, the California Board of Equalization, the U.S. Department of Defense Criminal Investigation Service, and the U.S. Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General participated in the investigation of the Mikaelian and Keroles organizations. U.S.A. Today, 9/13/95; L.A. Times, 9/13/95; Pasadena Star-News, 9/13/95; Daily Breeze, 9/18/95; Dept. of Justice Press Release, 9/12/95.
Federal authorities in Newark, NJ, charged 25 people, 15 of them Russian emigres, with operating an elaborate scheme which defrauded the Federal government and the State of New Jersey of more than $140 million in motor fuel taxes on over $500 million in fuel sales. The suspects used Kings Motor Oils, Inc., of Brooklyn, NY, to buy non-taxed home heating oil, then transferred it repeatedly through different fake companies until it reached PetroPlus Petroleum, a major motor fuel distributorship with offices in Deptford, NJ, where it was sold as tax-paid diesel fuel. The taxes were then distributed among the conspirators and deposited in bank accounts in Greece, Switzerland, Latvia, Aruba, and the British Virgin Islands. According to authorities, the scheme was masterminded by two Russian emigres, Igor Erlikh and Aaron Misulovin, who were joined by, Demetrios Karamanos, a Greek national, Daniel Enright, President of PetroPlus, and David Wassertrom, a Pennsylvania lawyer who arranged for Enright's proceeds to be concealed with the use of numerous foreign bank accounts. Others charged included Richard Pedroni, President of Pedroni Fuel Company, Richard Santo, President of Petro-Lux, Mary Ingram, President of American Minority Petroleum, Ruslan Erlikh, Vadim Bruselovsky, Ilya Klotsman, Michael Manzi and John Ruocco, employees of Kings, Arnold Zeidenfiel who arranged business on behalf of Kings, Kevin Ginty, President of Two Brothers Petro Energy Corp., and Aaron Chervin, a/k/a Aron Chervinsky, a/k/a Alex Herman, a/k/a David Hebaman, a/k/a Joseph Mignone, a/k/a Joseph Mignoe, a/k/a Frank LNU, who is a Russian emigre presently incarcerated for his involvement in a related scheme. The case was investigated by a task force of State and Federal agencies led by the IRS-CID and the FBI and included the U.S. Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General and the revenue agencies of Pennsylvania and New Jersey. New York Times; Wall Street Journal; Philadelphia Inquirer; Atlanta Constitution; Oregonian; Topeka Capital Journal (All 8/8/95).
Two NJ residents, convicted of conspiracy to evade more than $6 million federal and State diesel fuel taxes were sentenced in Federal court in Pittsburgh. Amarjit S. Grewal was sentenced to 5 years imprisonment and ordered to pay a $125,000 fine. Louis G. Roerig was sentenced to one year in prison. The sentencing marked the culmination of a massive investigation by the IRS-CID, assisted by the Pennsylvania Department of Revenue, Ohio Department of Taxation and the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service. In all, 25 defendants either pled guilty or were convicted. Four others remain fugitives. Dept. of Justice Press Release, 6/28/95.
John and Robert Schilling, owners of Schilling Bros. Truck Stop, St. John, IN, pled guilty to defrauding the Federal government of more than $45,000 in diesel fuel taxes. They also operated RJ Enterprises and RKS Trucking. Hammond, IN Times, 6/1/95
John A. Plantan, Schaumburg, IL, was indicted by a Federal grand jury in Hammond, IN, for failing to pay almost $71,000 in diesel fuel taxes on fuel he sold to truck stops in Indiana. Hammond, IN Times, 5/18/95
Robert J. Wagoner, President of Wagoner Trucking, of Northglenn, CO, was charged with evading more than $34,000 in Nebraska fuel taxes. He allegedly used tax-free diesel in his on-road trucks and obtained refunds for fuel purchased tax-free. Nebraska Department of Revenue Press Release, 7/21/95
The NY Department of Taxation and Finance continues to seize gasoline tanker trucks illegally transporting untaxed fuel imported from New Jersey. On July 3, Valadimir Trutin was observed filling his truck at a NJ terminal and proceeding to New York where he unloaded the untaxed fuel at Equinox Service Station in Brooklyn. He was charged with attempting to evade NY motor fuel taxes. The tanker truck was seized and the pumps at the station secured. Also charged were a service station employee for maintaining improper records. The owner of the truck, Vefim Khazin, was charged with excise tax evasion. On July 7, Christopher J. Nugent, was charged with attempted fuel tax evasion, and with being an unlicensed importer and an unregistered distributor of motor fuel. He was observed transporting more than 9,000 gallons of untaxed gasoline from NJ and unloading it at the Eagle Service Station in Woodmere, NY. The fuel and the rig were seized. On July 11, Anthony Giustra was cited for being an unlicensed diesel fuel distributor, having no uniform manifest and issuing a false statement. Giustra was observed loading untaxed fuel in NJ and then unloading it at the Citygas Service Station in Brooklyn. On July 27, Vladimir Ivanov was cited for being an unregistered distributor of motor fuel. He was observed loading his rig in NJ, proceeding to NY where he unloaded nearly 9,000 gallons of motor fuel. The rig and the fuel were seized. NY Dept. Taxation and Finance News Release, 8/1/95.
Philip H. Burgess, owner of Burgess Inc., Westminster, MA, was indicted for willful failure to pay over $20,000 in special fuels taxes that he collected from customers. Massachusetts Office of the Attorney General News Release, 4/1/95
WANT TO KNOW MORE?
For more information or updates to the mailing list, call Linda Morris, (202) 366-0570, FHWA (HPTS), 400 7th Street, SW, Washington, DC 20590.
U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration (HPTS) 400 Seventh Street, SW Washington, D.C. 20590
For further information contact Linda Morris
