Questions have been raised about whether an Akron man serving a nearly five-year prison term for stealing payroll taxes from local companies is still involved in an income tax preparation business.
An attorney for Ronald Conte said his client is not involved in a new business, which was given permission to use a similar name at the same location.
The lawyer said complaints filed with the local prosecutor and state’s prison system are a “hate campaign” by two of Conte’s victims suing him in a civil case.
However, the prison system has disciplined Conte after receiving the complaints.
Prison officials placed him in “disciplinary housing” at the Richland Correctional Facility for 10 days and restricted his visitation and access to the prison’s email system for 90 days.
In addition, prison officials recommended a review of his security, which could result in transfer to a higher-security prison, and restricted visiting and email privileges with a particular visitor, which his lawyer says is his wife. The restrictions began Thursday.
On Monday morning when a reporter visited the new business, Akron Income Tax Inc., at 2215 E. Waterloo Road in Akron, glossy blue business cards with Conte’s name as “executive consultant” were displayed on the front counter.
Conte, 57, was found guilty of five theft-related charges after pleading no contest last spring and was sentenced in late May to 59 months in prison by Summit County Common Pleas Judge Christine Croce.
As owner and operator of Akron Payroll and Tax, Conte collected taxes from his payroll clients and did not pay them to the local, state and federal agencies. He was ordered to pay $558,102 in restitution to 37 companies involved.
At issue is whether a letter, soliciting new clients to Akron Income Tax and signed by Conte with a “See You Soon!” message, was distributed this year while Conte is in prison.
A court-appointed receiver in the civil case saw copies of the letter apparently being prepared for mass mailing last month and shared it with authorities, according to the receiver’s attorney.
The letter so angered at least two of Conte’s victims that they also contacted the Akron-area Better Business Bureau and Summit County Prosecutor Sherri Bevan Walsh’s office, which then forwarded it to the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction.
Conte is “thumbing his nose at the judicial system,” said Paul Doerr Jr., president of Quick Clean Mobile Grooming Inc. Doerr said he lost $22,000 — $11,000 in payroll taxes that Conte withheld and another $11,000 that Doerr still had to pay the IRS.
Doerr and Cuyahoga Falls attorney Raymond Powell met Conte through small business networking groups.
Powell, who lost $16,700 in withheld taxes and is in settlement talks with the IRS, said he’s concerned Conte is looking for new victims.
“If you look at his history, he’s always dancing very close to the line of what’s appropriate and what’s not,” Powell said.
However, Conte’s attorney in the civil case, Larry Shenise, on Monday said the letter is a misunderstanding and “is strictly a hate campaign by Mr. Powell and Mr. Doerr,” parties in the civil case.
Shenise said the letter was from last year’s tax season and shouldn’t have been removed by the court-appointed receiver.
Conte’s name was removed after the complaints were received and before the letters were sent, Shenise said.
“They’re making it sound like he’s back there advertising from his prison cell. That’s not happening,” said Shenise. He added that Conte has previously given advice on how to run the business to his friend, Larry Tripodi, who bought the business, and possibly others.
“He’s not running the business,” Shenise said of Conte. Shenise also represents Tripodi in the civil case.
When told about Conte’s business cards on the counter on Monday, Shenise said: “That’s a no no, too. I didn’t know that was happening. I will take care of that....He is not associated with this business.”
He said he believes the prison system took disciplinary action because the state doesn’t want to look bad and Conte may have committed what Shenise considers a “technical violation” by not getting permission before talking to people about the business.
The success of the new business benefits victims because 30 percent of income goes toward restitution, said Shenise.
The new owner intends to hire Conte when he is released, Shenise said.
In a statement, Walsh said: “We are very upset to learn that Mr. Conte appears to be up to his old tricks. Mr. Conte scammed local businesses out of thousands of dollars, with some forced to file for bankruptcy. The Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections has taken action to prevent Mr. Conte from soliciting for business from behind bars. It appears the prospect of spending nearly five years in prison was not enough to dissuade Mr. Conte from violating prison rules. My office will continue to fight for the victims in this case, and we will oppose any request from Mr. Conte for an early release from prison.”
Conte was eligible for early release three months ago, but his criminal attorney, Joel Reed, said the judge made it clear she would not consider early release until after he serves nine months on March 2. Reed said he has not filed for early release and declined to say if that’s in the plans.
The prison system referred questions about whether Conte did anything illegal if he was soliciting business from prison to the Ohio State Highway Patrol. A patrol spokesman said an investigator looked into Conte’s actions in prison and determined that no criminal activity was occurring.
Powell and Doerr said they felt better knowing that Conte’s actions could affect his early release. But they don’t believe Conte is not involved in the business.
Christy Page, president of the Akron-area BBB, said her agency was also concerned about reports about Conte’s actions.
“While we aren’t sure what Mr. Conte’s full involvement is currently, consumers deserve to know the entire story before they decide who should prepare their tax returns or have access to their personal information,” she said.
Betty Lin-Fisher can be reached at 330-996-3724 or blinfisher@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow her @blinfisherABJ on Twitter or www.facebook.com/BettyLinFisherABJ.