Pair Accused of Sales Tax Fraud
The former owners of a chain of Los Angeles County gasoline stations were charged today with under-reporting sales taxes of $2.2 million in what authorities said may be the largest sales tax fraud case since the tax was first imposed 50 years ago.
Charles Nathan Shooster, 55, and his wife, Sonya Merle, 41, of Beverly Hills, are accused of claiming $34 million less in gross sales than they actually made at their 17 Sunny Gas and Good Cent Gas stations from April 1, 1983, to June 30, 1985. City Atty. James K. Hahn told reporters that the Shoosters face a jail sentence of 10 1/2 years and a fine of $62,000 if convicted of all 22 misdemeanor counts.
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