NASHVILLE, Tenn. - The Special Investigations Section of the Tennessee Department of Revenue conducted an investigation that led to the indictment, arrest and subsequent conviction of Glenn Alan Ely for evasion of sales tax. On Jan. 7, 2005, the previous manager and operator of D&E Repairs in Oliver Springs, Tenn., pled guilty to 14 Class E felony counts of causing false and fraudulent sales tax returns to be filed, a violation of Tenn. Code Ann. Section 67-1-1440(g).

On Jan. 7, 2005, Anderson County Circuit Court Judge James B. Scott Jr. accepted Ely's guilty plea and sentenced him to two years supervised probation to run concurrently with sentencing resulting from Roane County charges and make restitution of $18,918 to the state of Tennessee. The Department of Revenue also will seek additional civil penalties and interest from Ely.

"The Department of Revenue promotes voluntary taxpayer compliance by educating taxpayers, aggressively pursuing criminal sanctions and demanding accountability when taxpayers engage in fraudulent activity," said Revenue Commissioner Loren L. Chumley. "This investigation underscores our department's ongoing efforts to enforce Tennessee's tax laws."

The department pursues criminal cases in cooperation with local district attorneys general.

Chumley encourages all citizens who suspect violations of the Tennessee revenue laws to call the toll-free tax fraud hot line at (800) FRAUDTX (372-8389).

The Department of Revenue collects approximately 92 percent of total state tax revenue. During the 2003-2004 fiscal year, the department collected $9.1 billion in state taxes and fees. In addition to collecting state taxes, $1.6 billion of local sales tax was collected by the department for local governments during the 2003-2004 fiscal year. Besides collecting taxes, the department enforces the revenue laws fairly and impartially in an effort to encourage voluntary taxpayer compliance. The department also apportions revenue collections for distribution to the various state funds and local units of government. To learn more about the department, log on to www.Tennessee.gov/revenue.

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