4 enter pleas in tax
and welfare fraud cases
Four people pleaded guilty or no contest last week in Circuit Court in welfare and tax fraud cases.
On March 22, Stanley K. Rodrigues Jr., 50, pleaded guilty to one count of first-degree theft for fraudulently obtaining more than $30,000 in financial assistance, food stamps, medical and child care benefits that he was not entitled to by concealing that his minor child was no longer living with him. He will be sentenced June 4.
On March 24, Charlene J. Nonaka, 43, pleaded no contest to first-degree theft for fraudulently obtaining more than $27,000 in financial assistance, food stamps, medical and child care benefits between 2000 and 2003 when her child was no longer living with her. She will be sentenced July 7.
Also on March 22, Joseph L. Nuuanu, 55, of Ewa Beach, pleaded no contest to four counts of attempting to evade or defeat the state income tax on more than $200,000 income earned from Oahu Transit Services, which runs the city bus system. Between 1999 and 2003, Nuuanu is accused of falsely reporting on an employee's withholding allowance certificate that he was entitled to 99 withholding allowances. He will be sentenced May 26.
On March 23, Victor W. Jeffries, 49, pleaded no contest to three counts of attempting to evade or defeat the state income tax and two counts of second-degree theft. According to the state Department of Taxation, Jeffries filed amended state income tax returns for 1997 and 1998 and state income tax returns for 1999 to 2001 maintaining that wages earned in Hawaii were not taxable. He will be sentenced June 9.
Last week, criminal tax complaints were filed against Nicholas Lovretich and Howard N. Ritchie for failing to file annual general excise tax returns.
Lovretich allegedly failed to file general excise tax returns from 1996 through 2001 and annual transient accommodations tax returns for 2000 and 2001.
Ritchie allegedly failed to file general excise tax returns from 1998 through 2001.
Yesterday, Russell Grisham was charged with allegedly failing to file annual general excise tax returns from 1998 through 2000.
