Danbury tree service business owner gets 7 months for tax evasion

HARTFORD – The owner of a Danbury tree removal company was sentenced Tuesday, Nov. 12 by a federal judge to seven months in prison and two years of supervised release for tax evasion, according to Vanessa R. Avery, U. S. Attorney for the District of Connecticut.

Bill G. Makros, 58, of Danbury, who owned and operated Budget Tree and Stump Removal Service, LLC, was also ordered by U.S. District Judge Vernon D. Oliver in Hartford to pay $137,672 in restitution to the IRS.

On July 1, 2024, Makros pleaded guilty to tax evasion. He is released on bond and is required to report to prison on Jan. 7, 2025.

According to court documents and statements made in court, from 2016 through 2020, Makros’ business gross receipts totaled $1,426,915, but he concealed his income by receiving customer payments in the form of checks made payable to “cash” or to him personally, and by depositing the checks into bank accounts other than his business bank account. At times, he also cashed check payments and did not deposit the cash into any business or personal accounts.

For the 2016 through 2020 tax years, Makros failed to file his federal individual tax returns, and failed to pay taxes totaling $140,694, according to court documents.

In addition, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Makros received two pandemic relief loans totaling $31,200.  As part of the application process, Makros submitted IRS Schedule C forms for his business that purported to be part of his tax returns for 2019 and 2020, even though he had not filed tax returns with the IRS for those years.  The loans were subsequently forgiven.

This investigation was conducted by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Anastasia King.

In 2008, Makros was convicted in Connecticut state court of two counts of failing to pay over sales tax.