Long Island, NY - September 28, 2016 - Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman and Acting Commissioner of Taxation and Finance Nonie Manion announced today the indictment of Kulbir Singh, 53, his son Ladpreet Singh, 24, and gas stations Dashmesh Petroleum, Inc., Gobind Petroleum, Inc. and Karam Mart Inc. on eleven felony charges stemming from the alleged theft of over $1 million in sales tax collected for gasoline sales. \
Kulbir Singh operated three BP gas stations in Nassau County, located at 2 Hempstead Avenue, West Hempstead NY (Gobind Petroleum, Inc.), 385 Merrick Road, Valley Stream, NY (Dashmesh Petroleum, Inc.), and 653 Hempstead Avenue, Elmont NY (Karam Mart, Inc.). His son, Ladpreet Singh, also operated Karam Mart. According to the prosecution, the Singhs’ gas stations collected but failed to remit to New York State a total of over $1,000,000 in sales taxes from September 2011 through December 2014.
“Failing to pay legally owed taxes puts the burden on hardworking New Yorkers who play by the rules, while also straining our state’s resources,” said Attorney General Schneiderman. “We will not allow companies and businesses to evade our tax laws in order to boost their bottom line.”
According to statements made by the prosecutor at arraignment, Kulbir Singh’s businesses were previously convicted of felony charges for failing to pay sales tax. In October 2012, in Queens County Supreme Court, Kulbir Singh admitted to controlling four gasoline stations that had stolen more than $500,000 in sales taxes. The corporations pleaded guilty to felony tax fraud charges and agreed to pay more than $1,000,000 in restitution, interest and penalties to the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. However, the corporations ultimately paid only $500,000 of the restitution owed. It was during the investigation of the failure to pay the remaining monies that the Department of Taxation and Finance uncovered evidence that Singh allegedly continued to steal sales tax proceeds at gasoline stations he controlled, resulting in the current indictment.
If convicted, defendant Kulbir Singh faces up to 8 1/3 to 25 years in prison; his son Ladpreet Singh faces up to 5 to 15 years in prison.
The defendants were arraigned today before Honorable Terence P. Murphy in Nassau County Supreme Court. Bail was set at $250,000 cash or $500,000 bond for defendant Kulbir Singh and at $50,000 cash or $100,000 bond for defendant Ladpreet Singh. The charges against the defendants are merely allegations and they are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.
This case was investigated by the Department of Taxation and Finance’s Criminal Investigations Division and then referred to the Attorney General’s office for further investigation and prosecution.
Investigator Ryan Fannon of the Attorney General’s Investigations Bureau assisted in the investigation. The Investigations Bureau is led by Chief Dominick Zarrella. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant Attorney General Hugh L. McLean of the Criminal Enforcement and Financial Crimes Bureau of the Attorney General’s Office, assisted by Legal Analyst Isabela Pena Gonzalez. The Criminal Enforcement and Financial Crimes Bureau is led by Bureau Chief Gary T. Fishman and Deputy Bureau Chief Stephanie Swenton. The Division of Criminal Justice is led by Executive Deputy Attorney General Kelly Donovan.