BOSTON – The owner of a commercial and residential construction business in Dracut was charged on Friday, Jan. 29, 2021 with an income diversion and payroll tax scheme resulting in a tax loss that exceeded $1 million.
James P. Enwright, 53, was charged and has agreed to plead guilty to one count of tax evasion and one count of failure to pay over taxes. A hearing has not yet been scheduled.
According to the charging documents, Enwright owned and operated Enwright Construction. From 2013 through 2018, Enwright allegedly withheld from his tax preparer over $2.8 million of Enwright Construction’s gross receipts.
In addition, during the tax quarters ending March 31, 2013 through Sept. 30, 2019, it is alleged that Enwright paid over $3 million in wages to his employees in cash “under the table.” As a result of his conduct, Enwright underreported his personal income tax obligations and failed to report and pay the IRS the employment taxes owed on the cash wages. In total, Enwright allegedly caused a loss to the IRS of $1,025,312.
The charging statutes provide for a sentence of up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss, whichever is greater. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
United States Attorney Andrew Lelling and Ramsey E. Covington, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation Boston Field Office made the announcement. Assistant U.S. Attorney James R. Drabick of Lelling’s Securities, Financial & Cyber Fraud Unit is prosecuting the case.