Palmetto man gets prison after evading millions in taxes, records say
A Palmetto man who evaded more than a million dollars in federal taxes is headed to prison, according to prosecutors.
A judge sentenced 67-year-old Terry Brunning to two years in prison after prosecutors said he evaded paying more than $2.4 million in federal taxes, penalties and interest by concealing assets through a business.
U.S. District Judge Charlene E. Honeywell also sentenced Brunning to three years of supervised release and ordered him to pay $2,467,523.44 in restitution to the United States Department of the Treasury, according to the United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida.
The sentencing comes after Brunning previously pleaded guilty to tax evasion on April 2, according to court records.
According to federal prosecutors, Brunning bought real estate, vehicles and cashier’s checks in the name of the business to conceal the true ownership of the assets and the source of the money.
Prosecutors said Brunning used the business to conceal assets in an effort to avoid paying taxes he owed for the 1999, 2000 and 2001 tax years.
The Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation investigated the case.
