Pizza Restaurant Owner Failed To Report $765K In Taxable Income: Feds

OLD SAYBROOK, CT — The owner of a pizza restaurant in Old Saybrook has admitted to failing to report more than $765,000 in taxable income over a five-year period, according to federal authorities. Robert Kehayias, 58, of Old Saybrook, waived his right to be indicted and pleaded guilty Friday in federal court to one count of filing a false tax return, U.S. States Attorney Deirdre M. Daly and Joel P. Garland, Special Agent in Charge of IRS Criminal Investigation in New England, announced in a press release.

According to court documents and statements made in court, Kehayias owns and operates Pizza Works (also known as Pizza Junction, LLC), a restaurant located in Old Saybrook. For the 2010 though 2014 tax years, authorities say Kehayias deposited most of the cash receipts generated by the restaurant into his personal money market account, a portion of the cash receipts into other personal bank accounts, and only a minimal amount of cash into the business bank account.

“During this time, Kehayias provided his tax return preparer with Quickbooks reports that significantly understated the gross receipts of the business each year,” Daly wrote in the press release. “As a result, Kehayias failed to report more $765,733 in taxable income on his federal income tax returns for the 2010 through 2014 tax years, and failed to pay approximately $340,000 in taxes.”

Kehayias is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 16, 2018, at which time he faces a maximum term of imprisonment of three years, a fine of up to approximately $680,000 and back taxes, interest and penalties, according to Daly.

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