Owner of Nassau Auto Body Shops Pleads Guilty to $190K Tax Fraud

A Garden City man pleaded guilty Friday to stealing nearly $190,000 over eight years by underreporting sales from the auto body shops he owned in Mineola and Hempstead, according to the Nassau County District Attorney’s office.

Douglas Donnelly Jr., 51, pleaded guilty to fifth-degree criminal tax fraud and third-degree criminal tax fraud. He was sentenced to a conditional discharge and ordered to pay a restitution of $188,199 to the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance.

Donnelly originally faced up to 15 years in prison if convicted of the top charges following his arraignment in April 2015.

Between March 2008 and February 2014, Donnelly allegedly failed to file tax returns and underreported sales from the three auto body shops he ran:

• Mineola-Jericho Auto Body Inc., located at 157 E. Jericho Turnpike in Mineola
• Trinity Auto Body Ltd., located at 226 Main St. in Hempstead
• Trinity’s Mineola Jericho Auto Body Ltd., 157 E. Jericho Turnpike in Mineola

During that time, Donnelly failed to remit a total of $188,198.93 from his businesses, officials said.

The New York State Department of Taxation and Finance investigated records from the three companies and discovered the discrepancies, the DA said. Officials said they also found certain quarters where tax returns were never filed.

“This defendant collected more than $188,000.00 in sales tax revenue from customers and used the money for his own personal purposes,” District Attorney Madeline Singas said in a press release. “Sales tax revenues pay for critical public services to keep our communities safe and healthy, and my office will prosecute anyone who tries to scam the taxpayers for their own benefit.”

Image via NCDA