(WNY News Now) – A Rochester businessman is sentenced after falsely claiming yacht business expenses, resulting in nearly $900,000 in unpaid taxes.
ROCHESTER, N.Y. – James Leonardo, the 56-year-old owner of MY PI, LLC, was sentenced today for filing a false tax return that resulted in significant tax evasion. Chief U.S. District Judge Elizabeth A. Wolford handed down the sentence, which included time served, one year of supervised release, and an order for restitution totaling $2,267,315.42.
Leonardo, who owns the 110-foot yacht “Pure Insanity,” was convicted of misreporting rental income and incorrectly deducting maintenance costs for the vessel, which was used both for business and personal purposes. Despite the yacht being used for business purposes only one-third of the time, Leonardo falsely claimed it was used 100% of the time for business. This misrepresentation allowed him to improperly deduct all operating expenses, reducing his tax liability.
The fraudulent deductions resulted in Leonardo failing to report an additional $872,869 in income taxes for the years 2015 through 2018. His actions were part of a scheme to lower his tax burden by inflating business expenses related to the yacht’s operation and maintenance.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Richard A. Resnick, who handled the case, confirmed that Leonardo’s actions not only violated tax laws but also misled the IRS, undermining the integrity of the tax system. The case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division, and the Department of Defense, Office of Inspector General’s Defense Criminal Investigative Service.
Leave a Reply