The owners of the Tony Luke’s cheesesteak franchise headquartered in Philadelphia have been charged with conspiracy to defraud the IRS, tax evasion and aiding and assisting in filing false tax returns.
The indictment claims that from 2006 to 2016 Anthony Lucidonio Sr., 82 and his son Nicholas, 52, hid more than eight million dollars in receipts from the IRS. The pair deposited only a portion of their income into business bank accounts and filed false business and personal tax returns that substantially understated their income. The Lucidonios allegedly gave their accountant a second set of numbers to prepare their corporate and personal tax returns.
Failing to report the eight million dollars is only the beginning. The Lucidonios also committed employment tax fraud by paying their employees a portion of their salaries “on the books” and a portion “off the books” in cash. In 2014 and 2015 the pair allegedly filed false quarterly employment tax returns that significantly understated wages paid and taxes due. In another scheme they paid employees with checks that they then asked them to sign over to the company, in exchange for envelopes filled with cash.
The father and son face a maximum sentence of 66 years in prison, a period of supervised release, restitution and penalties.