The federal government’s crackdown on Connecticut state workers who cheat on their federal tax returns has snared a Middletown man, prosecutors say.
Ajmal Jenkins, 39, pleaded guilty Wednesday in New Haven federal court to one count of tax evasion, the Connecticut U.S. Attorney’s Office and Internal Revenue Service’s New England investigative unit said Thursday.
According to investigators, Jenkins has worked about 15 years as a mental health assistant for the state Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services. He is based at the Connecticut Valley Hospital in Middletown.
From tax years 2009 to 2013, Jenkins paid little or no federal income taxes on about $353,565 he earned in the same period, investigators said. Meantime, his filing lapses kept the IRS from collecting about $52,549 in federal income taxes from him.
The IRS also probe revealed, investigators said, that certain individuals submitted fraudulent W-4 forms claiming numerous exemptions, or that they were exempt, and had little or no money withheld from their wages.
Jenkins faces a maximum five-year prison term and a fine of up to $250,000, prosecutors said. He also must repay all back taxes, plus interest and penalties.
Jenkins could not be immediately located Thursday for comment.
