Worcester Roofer Agrees to Plead Guilty to Tax Evasion

BOSTON - The owner of a commercial and residential roofing business has been charged with, and has agreed to plead guilty to, concealing $1.6 million in income from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).

Jake Miller, 42, of Worcester, has agreed to plead guilty to one count of tax evasion. A plea hearing has not yet been scheduled by the Court.

According to the charging documents, Miller owned and operated Kostas Roofing, a business that he conducted under the alias "Paul Kostas" rather than under his own name. It is alleged that, between 2013 and 2021, Miller cashed the checks that he received from roofing customers and deposited the proceeds into his personal bank accounts. Despite receiving at least $1.6 million from the roofing business during this period, Miller allegedly filed no income tax return for any of these years. As a result, Miller allegedly evaded income taxes of approximately $450,000.

The charge of tax evasion provides for a sentence of up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss, whichever is greater. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy; Tom Demeo, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service's Criminal Investigation in Boston; and Ketty Larco-Ward, Inspector in Charge of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service's Boston Division, made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney David M. Holcomb of the Securities, Financial & Cyber Fraud Unit is prosecuting the case.

The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in the court of law.