Legal Issues

Former Police Officer Going to Prison For Defrauding the IRS

Former Police Officer Going to Prison For Defrauding the IRS

A former Maryland police captain is going to federal prison for defrauding the IRS. 

According to an official release from the tax agency, Edward Scott Finn, of Dunkirk, Maryland, was sentenced to 16 months in federal prison after admitting to tax evasion. U.S. District Judge Deborah L. Boardman also ordered Finn to subsequently serve two years of supervised release.

The defendant defrauded the IRS by failing to report $1.3 million in earnings, resulting in a loss of $367,765 -- for which he must now pay restitution -- to the U.S. Department of the Treasury.

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Credit: Choochart Choochaikupt/EyeEm/Getty Images

Finn, a former Lieutenant with the Prince George's County Police Department (PGPD), owned and operated Edward Finn Inc. (EFI), a private security company. The aforementioned $1.3 million was earned between the years of 2014 and 2019 from this business venture. 

Per court documents, Finn was employed by PGPD from December 26, 1995 to April 26, 2021. Officers were allowed to work part-time in addition to their police duties due to a program called Secondary Law Enforcement Employment (SLEE) -- this led to his private security work. 

As part of his plea agreement, acknowledged he knowingly underreported his federal personal income tax returns from 2014 through 2019. During those five years, Finn deposited checks payable to EFI into outside bank accounts he owned.

Finn also created false business expenses to reduce his tax liability. He did this by paying friends and relatives for "security services" that were never actually performed. Furthermore, he used EFI funds to purchase a boat, a car, and other items to enhance his lifestyle. 

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Credit: Getty Images

Finally, Finn admitted that on his arrest date, April 22, 2021, he began the process of erasing and resetting his smartphone to hide evidence of his crimes as soon as federal agents announced their presence at his residence. 

FBI Baltimore Field Office Special Agent in Charge Thomas J. Sobocinski said, "Despite Finn's position of trust as an officer of the law, he lied and stole from the government. He used his Secondary Law Enforcement Employment (SLEE) to propel his greed."

"Today's sentence articulates financial crimes do not pay," he continued.

Finn's case was the result of a joint investigation among the FBI, the IRS Criminal Investigation division, PGPD, and the Prince George's County State's Attorney's Office. 

What do you think about former Lieutenant Finn's crimes?

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Feature Image Credit: Douglas Sacha/Getty Images

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Rebekah Barton

Rebekah Barton

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