Rhode Island businessman convicted a second time on tax charges

Date: August 14, 2025

Contact: newsroom@ci.irs.gov

PROVIDENCE — A Rhode Island businessman was convicted on tax charges today for a second time, admitting that in this most recent matter he failed to pay more than $1.3 million in taxes, penalties, fees, and interest owed to the IRS dating back to tax years 2007 – 2013, announced Acting United States Attorney Sara Miron Bloom.

Under the terms of a plea agreement filed with the court, William N. L’Europa of Cranston, entered a guilty plea today to a charge of tax evasion and he is required to pay restitution to the IRS totaling $1,367,336.08 no later than the date of sentencing in this matter. L’Europa is scheduled to be sentenced on November 12, 2025.

In 2012, L’Europa and a business partner were convicted on charges of conspiracy to defraud the United States and filing a false tax return. They admitted to the court that they underreported business receipts for tax years 2007-2010, resulting in the underpayment of federal taxes to the Internal Revenue Service of more than $500,000. In January 2013, L’Europa was sentenced to 27 months in federal prison and ordered to file accurate, amended federal tax returns for tax years 2007 – 2011, and to pay all taxes due the IRS.

Court documents reflect that in March 2019, L’Europa submitted documentation to the IRS falsely indicating that he had little or no income. As a result, the IRS did not pursue collections of taxes due at that time. Further, in 2022 L’Europa signed an Offer in Compromise to lower his liability for taxes owed for calendar years 2007-2013, knowing that he was understating his actual personal income. The IRS determined that, in fact, L’Europa manipulated the finances and business records for a business for which he worked to have it under report his income and conceal his personal expenditures, including over $10,000 on a motorcycle, $100,000 to discharge a debt owed the State of Rhode Island, $12,000 downpayment on a new truck for his wife, and other personal expenditures paid for through the use of a business credit card paid off with funds from business accounts.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Milind M. Shah.

The matter was investigated by IRS-Criminal Investigation.

The sentences imposed in this matter will be determined by a federal district judge after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) is the law enforcement arm of the IRS, responsible for conducting financial crime investigations, including tax fraud, narcotics trafficking, money laundering, public corruption, healthcare fraud, identity theft and more. IRS-CI special agents are the only federal law enforcement agents with investigative jurisdiction over violations of the Internal Revenue Code, obtaining a 90% federal conviction rate. The agency has 19 field offices located across the U.S. and 14 attaché posts abroad.