A 54-year-old woman has been sentenced to one year in a federal prison and ordered to pay $239,876 in restitution to the IRS following her conviction on tax fraud charges.
Judge William Martinez also fined Lisabeth Melahn, of Colorado Springs, $15,000.
She must surrender to the U. S. Bureau of Prisons on June 1 after Martinez gave her time to put her business affairs in order.
Melahn was indicted in March of 2015 and pleaded guilty on Oct. 30.
She bought Tan Your Hide II in 2007 and ran seven tanning salons in Colorado Springs and one in Monument.
Between 2007 and 2010 she deposited all checks and credit card funds to the business account, but none of the cash receipts, according to a news release by Jeff Dorschner, spokesman for U.S. Attorney John Walsh. These were deposited in her personal account.
“By hiding a million dollars in her business income in a crude scheme to evade paying over $200,000 in taxes properly due and owing, this defendant shirked her duty as an American and as a citizen to support our country,” Walsh said.
“As we approach the end of tax filing season, taxpayers should think twice about trying to conceal income from the IRS; it’s only a matter of time before you are caught and brought to justice,” said Stephen Boyd, Special Agent in Charge for IRS Criminal Investigation, Denver Field Office.
This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation unit.
Kirk Mitchell: 303-954-1206, kmitchell@denverpost.com or @kirkmitchell or
