A Marengo County business owner has pleaded guilty to tax evasion charges, according to the Alabama Department of Revenue.
Mohamed Yehya Alsahqani, 36, pleaded guilty to tax charges against him as owner and operator of 610 South LLC, a convenience store (the Marathon station) in Linden on Jan. 4. Alsahqani was indicted on five counts of tax evasion by a Marengo County grand jury in 2015.
Alsahqani admitted in court that he collected sales tax from customers of his convenience store but did not remit the tax collected to the State of Alabama, Marengo County and the City of Linden. Alsahqani owes the State of Alabama $39,064.90, Marengo County $17,433.25, and the City of Linden $26,134.21, for a total due of $82,632.36. Alsahqani received a sentence of one year to serve and supervised probation during the pendency of restitution.
District Attorney Gregory S. Griggers of the 17th Judicial Circuit prosecuted the case with assistance from Special Agent Randy Day of the Alabama Department of Revenue.
Officials with the Alabama Department of Revenue said in a press release that the agency is committed to combating tax crimes and has launched a new initiative involving local district attorneys in its efforts.
“These communities are frequently hardest hit by local businesses that refuse to collect and remit taxes properly,” said Revenue Commissioner Julie P. Magee. “By partnering with the local district attorneys, we are able to more effectively target, prosecute and punish tax criminals.”