The manager of an orthodontics practice in Fresno, Calif., pleaded guilty to tax evasion and obstructing an IRS audit.
Pilar Rose, 51, managed her husband's orthodontics practice and created false financial statements that underreported the practice's earnings, according to a Nov. 4 news release from the Justice Department.
Through the false statements, Ms. Rose and her husband evaded more than $870,000 that they owed in federal taxes.
In 2016 during an IRS audit, Ms. Rose altered hundreds of checks that were for nondeductible personal expenses, including their mortgage, utilities and car payments, trying to pass them as deductible business expenses. In addition, she created false statements for the practice to match the altered checks, the release said.
Ms. Rose faces a penalty of up to five years in prison and a $100,000 fine for the tax evasion charge and additional three years and a $5,000 fine for the obstruction charge.