On Monday, Feb. 6, 2023, two Charlotte Business Owners pled guilty to felony tax charges in Wake County Superior Court. The charges were filed by the North Carolina Department of Revenue.
Thomas Joseph Alexander, Jr., 56, of Indian Land, S.C., pled guilty to two counts of Aid and Abet Embezzlement of State Property and one count of Conspiracy to Commit Embezzlement of State Property. His wife, Michelle Anne Alexander, 51, also of Indian Land, S.C., pled guilty to one count of Aid and Abet Embezzlement of State Property and two counts of Conspiracy to Commit Embezzlement of State Property.
Wake County Superior Court Judge Paul Ridgeway sentenced Thomas Alexander to a 19-month minimum, 32-month maximum prison term. The sentence was suspended and he was placed on supervised probation for 24 months. As a condition of probation, Thomas Alexander was ordered to serve 3 days in the custody of the Wake County Sheriff, be placed under electronic home monitoring for a period of 60 days, and complete 100 hours of community service.
Michelle Alexander was sentenced to a 16-month minimum, 29-month maximum prison term. The sentence was suspended and she was placed on supervised probation for 24 months. As a condition of probation, Michelle Alexander was ordered to serve 3 days in the custody of the Wake County Sheriff, be placed under electronic home monitoring for a period of 60 days, and complete 100 hours of community service.
The Alexanders paid $273,949.33 in restitution prior to the plea.
Information presented in court showed that the Alexanders, co-owners of District 704, LLC, did assist, or aid and abet the business to embezzle, misapply, and convert to its own use, approximately $147,456.38 in North Carolina Sales Tax during the period of Feb. 1, 2017, through Dec. 31, 2019. Additional information presented in court showed that the Alexanders, co-owners of Urban Farmhouse Furniture Company, LLC, did assist, or aid and abet the business to embezzle, misapply, and convert to its own use, approximately $126,492.95 in North Carolina Sales Tax during the period of January 1, 2020, through March 31, 2021. During this time, the Alexanders were the responsible persons of both businesses and acting as agents of the State, who were under a duty to collect, hold in trust, and remit North Carolina Sales Taxes to the North Carolina Department of Revenue
The charges against the Alexanders resulted from an investigation by special agents with the Department’s Criminal Investigations Division in Raleigh and was prosecuted by the Special Prosecutions attorneys in the office of the Attorney General.
The North Carolina Department of Revenue funds public services benefiting the people of North Carolina. We administer the tax laws and collect the taxes due in an impartial, consistent, secure, and efficient manner.