Innis Frederick, a former payroll manager for Equinox Home Care LLC, a Stratford-based home care company, has been charged with federal tax fraud by a Hartford grand jury.
Frederick, of Saint Cloud, Fla., Appeared on video conference call before US Judge Robert M. Spector on September 3, pleading not guilty. According to the Connecticut District Attorney’s Office, he was released with a $ 20,000 bond.
Equinox Home Care was a partnership between Frederick’s sister Theresa Foreman and another person not named in the indictment. Following the charges brought against Frederick, the partnership ended in September 2012 and Foreman was sentenced by the court to make payments to her partner for the purchase of the partner’s company shares.
However, between 2012 and 2016, Frederick assisted Foreman fraudulently adapting the payroll process to allow checks to be issued to “ghost employees” who had never worked for Equinox Home Care. Instead, the money went to Foreman, who didn’t show the hundreds of thousands of dollars in income on her tax return. By submitting incorrect payroll data, Frederick also caused Forms W-2 and W-3 to be submitted to the Internal Revenue Service.
Frederick was previously charged with conspiracy to defraud the government and obstruct and harm the IRS, an offense that carries a maximum prison sentence of five years.
Foreman pleaded guilty to tax evasion and was sentenced in January to 12 months and one day in prison and $ 641,941.46 in reparation.
