FORMER LIQUOR STORE OWNERS ARRESTED ON
SALES TAX EVASION CHARGES

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - On Friday, Sept. 7, 2007, Tennessee Department of Revenue special agents arrested Ahmad T. Wahidi, 36, on charges of state sales tax evasion and theft over $10,000.  Wahidi’s brother, John J. Wahidi, 39, surrendered himself for arrest the same day at the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department on charges of state sales tax evasion and theft over $60,000. Revenue’s Special Investigations Section conducted the investigation that led to the indictments. Ahmad Wahidi is the former owner of J.T. Liquors located at 2723 Murfreesboro Road in Antioch and John Wahidi is the former owner of River Road Liquors located at 7078 Charlotte Pike in Nashville.  On Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2007, the former manager of River Road Liquors, Kambiz (Kris) Samadi, 29, was arrested by officers of the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department on charges of conspiring to evade sales tax.

“The Department of Revenue is committed to applying Tennessee’s tax laws and policies uniformly to all taxpayers to ensure a level playing field,” said Revenue Commissioner Reagan Farr. “The department cannot and will not allow people engaged in fraudulent tax activities to have a competitive advantage over honest businesspeople.”

	Ahmad Wahidi was indicted by the Davidson County Grand Jury on one Class C Felony count of theft over $10,000 and 20 Class E Felony counts of evading sales tax in violation of Tenn. Code Ann. Section 67-1-1440(g) for filing false sales tax returns on behalf of the liquor store for the period Jan. 1, 2004 through Aug. 31, 2005. The alleged fraud resulted in $339,103.45 of unreported taxable sales and the failure to remit $31,364.22 in sales tax. If convicted, he could be sentenced to a maximum of three years in the state penitentiary and fined $10,000 for the Class C Felony. For each Class E Felony count, he could be sentenced to two years and fined $3,000.
	John Wahidi was indicted by the Davidson County Grand Jury on one Class B Felony count of theft over $60,000 and 20 Class E Felony counts of sales tax evasion in violation of Tenn. Code Ann. Section 67-1-1440(g) for filing false sales tax returns on behalf of the liquor store for the period Jan. 1, 2004 through Aug. 31, 2005. The alleged fraud resulted in $1,188,208.41 of unreported taxable sales and the failure to remit $109,907.84 in sales tax.  If convicted, he could be sentenced to a maximum of twelve years in the state penitentiary and fined $25,000 for the Class B Felony. For each Class E Felony count, he could be sentenced to two years and fined $3,000.
	Kambiz Samadi was indicted by the Davidson County Grand Jury on twenty Class E Felony counts of conspiring to evade sales tax in violation of Tenn. Code Ann. Section 67-1-1440(e) for filing false sales tax returns on behalf of River Road Liquors for the period Jan. 1, 2004 through Aug. 31, 2005. The alleged fraud resulted in $1,188,208.41 of unreported taxable sales and the failure to remit $109,907.84 in sales tax. If convicted, Samadi could be sentenced to two years and fined $3,000 for each Class E Felony count.

This case was pursued criminally by the department in cooperation with the Davidson County District Attorney General Victor S. Johnson’s office. Citizens who suspect violations of Tennessee's revenue laws should call the toll-free tax fraud hot line at (800) FRAUDTX (372-8389).

The Department of Revenue is responsible for the administration of state tax laws and motor vehicle title and registration laws established by the legislature and the collection of taxes and fees associated with those laws. The Department of Revenue collects approximately 92 percent of total state tax revenue. During the 2006-2007 fiscal year, the department collected $11.0 billion in state taxes and fees. In addition to collecting state taxes, $1.9 billion of local sales tax was collected by the department for local governments during the 2006-2007 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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