A Douglas County woman was sentenced to prison this week for failing to pay more than $1.3 million in employment taxes from her Denver bridal shop, federal officials said.
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Donna Savoy of Parker pleaded guilty in February to one count of willful failure to account for and pay over trust fund taxes, according to a news release from the U.S. Department of Justice.
Savoy, the owner of Donna Beth Creations in Denver, was sentenced Monday to one year and one day in prison, court records show. She faced a maximum sentence of five years in prison, according to federal officials.
“As the owner of the company, Savoy was responsible for withholding Social Security, Medicare and income taxes from her employees’ wages, paying those funds over to the IRS and filing quarterly employment tax returns with the IRS,” federal officials stated in the release.
Savoy withheld taxes from her employees’ wages, but didn’t pay those taxes to the IRS between 2014 and 2024, according to the release. She also failed to file employment tax returns during that decade and spent the tax money she withheld from her employees on personal and business expenses, officials said.
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On top of her year in prison, Savoy was ordered to repay the unfiled taxes and a $20,000 fine, according to a news release from the IRS.
“By choosing to enrich herself at the expense of her employees and honest taxpayers, Savoy undermined the integrity of our tax system,” said Amanda Prestegard, the special agent in charge of the IRS Criminal Investigation field office in Denver. “Employment tax fraud carries significant consequences, and our special agents remain committed to holding business owners accountable who engage in this type of fraud.”
Savoy’s attorney and attorneys for the U.S. Department of Justice did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Tuesday.
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This is a developing story and may be updated.
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