Former Shakopee Business Owner Sentenced for Failing to Pay Taxes

Stephen Paul Clough, a former owner of Gamma Vacuum in Shakopee, has been sentenced in federal court for failing to pay taxes that resulted in a loss of more than $900,000 to the IRS.

According to the United States Attorney's Office, Clough received a sentence of "three years of probabtion, four months of community confinement, and a $25,000 fine for one count of willful failure to pay over tax."

 May 7, after being charged April 27. He was sentenced today. 

The U.S. Attorney's office released the following description:

Between 2003 to 2010, Clough failed to pay the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) appropriate income and employment taxes withheld from the wages of the employees at the company. Clough was solely responsible for Gamma Vacuum’s bookkeeping, including the withholding and payment of payroll taxes. Instead of making those payments, he used the funds to pay company expenses. Gamma Vacuum manufactures pumps and related products. Clough’s criminal behavior resulted in a tax loss to the IRS of $944,134.29. 

This case was the result of an investigation by the IRS-Criminal Investigation Division.