Putnam County Businessman Pleads Guilty to Theft Charge

Baxter, Tenn. - The Special Investigations Section of the Tennessee Department of Revenue conducted the investigation that led to the March 8, 2013, guilty plea of Punit Rajendra Patel, age 26, Corporate Officer of Yogeshwari, Inc., d/b/a PFS Market, located in Baxter, Tennessee. Judge David Patterson, Putnam County Criminal Court, accepted Patel's guilty plea to one count of theft property over $10,000.00, a Class C felony, and ordered him to pay $26,692.34 in restitution to the state of Tennessee. Patel was placed on eighteen months unsupervised probation.

"The majority of businesses pay appropriate taxes," said Revenue Commissioner Richard H. Roberts. "I hope this case will serve as a warning to others who think they can get away with tax fraud in Tennessee. We will continue to pursue criminal activity and prosecute tax evaders to assure fairness in our tax structure for Tennesseans."

Commissioner Roberts expressed his appreciation for the excellent cooperation the department has enjoyed with District Attorney General Randy York's office. Citizens who suspect violations of Tennessee's revenue laws should call the toll-free tax fraud hot line at (800) FRAUDTX (372-8389).

In addition to collecting state taxes, $2.0 billion of local sales and business taxes were collected by the department for local governments during the 2012 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.TN.gov/revenue.

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