Matthew Buresh, 65, a Lexington businessman and owner of CR Cable Construction Inc. (CR), was sentenced to 24 months in federal prison on Friday for failing to pay over $800,000 in employment taxes to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). U.S. District Judge Karen Caldwell handed down the sentence.
Buresh served as the President of CR Cable Construction Inc., a Lexington-based company specializing in the installation of underground utility lines. In his role as owner, Buresh was legally obligated to withhold and remit trust fund taxes – including individual income, Social Security, and Medicare taxes – from his employees’ paychecks, along with the company’s matching contributions, to the IRS on a quarterly basis. These are commonly referred to as “employment taxes.”
READ :Lake County Man Gets Life In Prison; Victim Previously Targeted In Polk County Kidnapping
According to court documents and Buresh’s plea agreement, between March 2018 and December 2022, Buresh was fully aware of his company’s responsibility to deposit these employment taxes with the IRS. Despite this knowledge, he knowingly chose not to remit the taxes withheld from CR employees’ wages.
The investigation revealed that Buresh was informed of the outstanding employment tax liabilities, had accounted for these taxes, and possessed sufficient funds to pay them. Nevertheless, he willfully neglected to pay a significant portion of these taxes throughout the four-year period.
Adding to the severity of the case, the investigation also uncovered that between 2017 and 2022, Buresh withdrew a substantial sum of approximately $2.9 million in cash from CR’s bank accounts. These funds were used for various purposes, including business expenses, Buresh’s personal wages, and distributions to himself.
READ: Pennsylvania Court Tosses County’s Climate Lawsuit
Under federal sentencing guidelines, Buresh will be required to serve at least 85 percent of his two-year prison sentence. Following his release, he will be subject to three years of supervision by the U.S. Probation Office. In addition to the prison sentence, Judge Caldwell ordered Buresh to pay $805,787.82 in restitution to the IRS.
The sentencing was jointly announced by Paul McCaffrey, Acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky, and Karen Wingerd, Special Agent in Charge of IRS-Criminal Investigations, Cincinnati Field Division.
The IRS investigated Buresh’s tax evasion. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brittany Dunn-Pirio prosecuted the United States in this case.
Please make a small donation to the Tampa Free Press to help sustain independent journalism. Your contribution enables us to continue delivering high-quality, local, and national news coverage.
Connect with us: Follow the Tampa Free Press on Facebook and Twitter for breaking news and updates.
Sign up: Subscribe to our free newsletter for a curated selection of top stories delivered straight to your inbox.
