Revenue Investigation Leads to Surrender of Memphis Businessman on Fraud and Theft Charges
Tuesday, March 24, 2009 | 06:14am
MEMPHIS, Tenn. - The Special Investigations Section of the Tennessee Department of Revenue conducted the investigation that led to the surrender of Jon Kelly Parks, 39, president of Personal Computer Doctor, Inc., located at 7825 Winchester Road in Memphis.
Parks surrendered Monday at the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office. The Shelby County grand jury issued a warrant for his arrest after indicting Parks on sales tax fraud and theft of property charges. Bond was set at $5,000.
“When sales tax is collected from the public and not remitted, it is a breach of the public trust,” said Commissioner Reagan Farr. “The Department of Revenue aggressively pursues criminal sanctions and demands accountability for such actions.”
Parks was indicted on one count of Sales Tax Evasion in violation of Tennessee Code Annotated Section 67-1-1440(g), a Class E felony, and one count of Theft of Property over $10,000 but less than $60,000, a violation of Tennessee Code Annotated Section 39-14-103, a Class C felony. If convicted, Parks could be sentenced to a maximum of two years in the state penitentiary and fined $3,000 for the sales tax evasion charge and a maximum of six years and $10,000 for the theft charge. Additionally, civil taxes, penalties and interest will be due the state once the criminal case is concluded.
This case was pursued criminally by the department in cooperation with District Attorney General William L. Gibbon’s office. Citizens who suspect violations of the Tennessee revenue laws should call the toll-free tax fraud hot line at (800) FRAUDTX (372-8389).
The Department of Revenue is responsible for the administration of state tax laws and motor vehicle title and registration laws established by the legislature and the collection of taxes and fees associated with those laws. The Department of Revenue collects approximately 92 percent of total state tax revenue. During the 2007-2008 fiscal year, the department collected $11.2 billion in state taxes and fees. In addition to collecting state taxes, $1.9 billion of local sales tax was collected by the department for local governments during the 2007-2008 fiscal year.Besides collecting taxes, the department enforces the revenue laws fairly and impartially in an effort to encourage voluntary taxpayer compliance. The department also apportions revenue collections for distribution to the various state funds and local units of government. To learn more about the department, log on to www.Tennessee.gov/revenue.
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