New Canaan Man Pleads Guilty To Tax Evasion Charge: Feds

NEW CANAAN, CT — A New Canaan man waived his right to be indicted and pleaded guilty Thursday to a tax evasion charge, U.S. Attorney for Connecticut Vanessa Roberts Avery and Harry Chavis Jr., a special agent in charge of Internal Revenue Service criminal investigation in New England, announced in a news release.

According to court documents and statements made in court, Vishal Dhar, 55, of New Canaan, formed and operated various entities, including Grey Brown Inc., a holding company for several restaurants operating under the name "Oaxaca Taqueria," West Partners, Inc. and NY Cloud Kitchens, LLC.

From approximately October 2013 through August 2023, Dhar willfully failed to disclose to the IRS significant income from his business and gifts from family members, Avery and Chavis said.

According to Avery and Chavis, Dhar paid off personal and business debts, invested in a new business venture and paid various personal expenses "instead of paying his outstanding tax liabilities."

In evading payment of taxes owed, Dhar "used financial accounts in the names of entities and other individuals rather than in his own name, paid personal expenses with corporate funds and omitted significant assets on IRS forms," according to Avery and Chavis.

Dhar also failed to disclose the receipt of an employee retention credit check in the amount of $254,203.01 made payable to Oaxaca Atlantic Avenue, LLC in a bankruptcy case involving Grey Brown Inc. filed in the Southern District of New York, according to Avery and Chavis.

The employee retention credit is a refundable tax credit for certain eligible businesses and tax-exempt organizations that had employees and were affected during the COVID-19 pandemic, Avery and Chavis said.

Dhar owes $272,390.07 in back taxes, penalties and interest for the 2011 through 2020 tax years and has agreed to pay that full amount in restitution as part of a plea agreement, according to Avery and Chavis.

Dhar is released pending sentencing, which is scheduled for August. He faces a maximum prison term of five years, according to Avery and Chavis.