Taxpayers were taken for a ride by a Ridgewood used car dealership that allegedly swindled the state out of nearly $300,000 in unpaid taxes, prosecutors announced on Friday.
Cypress Motors, located at 79-03 Cypress Ave., and its owner — Pasquale Bonavita, 50, of Ozone Park — allegedly failed to disclose millions of dollars in sales revenue on 21 quarterly tax returns filed with the state between March 1, 2009, and May 31, 2014.
Bonavita told QNS on Monday that “There is a small tax problem here, but nothing like what has been printed.” He indicated that the alleged charges include numbers “that are very over-inflated,” and that his attorney is working to resolve the matter.
According to Queens District Attorney Richard A. Brown, the dealership allegedly filed returns that indicated that it only made sales totaling $1.126 million, resulting in a sales tax liability of just over $99,500. However, a state audit revealed that Cypress Hills actually generated $4.436 million in sales during the same period.
The state and city should have received more than $390,000 in tax revenue from Cypress Motors, according to Brown.
“Sales taxes are meant for the public treasury, not to line the pockets of business owners,” said Brown, who announced the charges with State Taxation and Finance Commissioner Jerry Boone. “This kind of fraud makes every New Yorker a victim.”
Bonavita was charged with second- and third-degree grand larceny, criminal tax fraud, falsifying business records, offering a false instrument for filing and scheme to defraud; Cypress Motors faces identical corporate charges.
Following arraignment on June 8, Bonavita was released on his own recognizance and ordered to return to court on June 22. He faces up to 15 years behind bars if convicted. Cypress Motors, if convicted, faces a fine of up to $10,000 or double the amount of the illegal gain.
