Local business owner pleads guilty to filing false tax documents

PROVIDENCE – The owner of the Providence-based business R.I.J. Inc. pleaded guilty to charges related to underreporting and failing to pay taxes on income, the U.S. Attorney’s Office District of Rhode Island announced Thursday.

Gladys Rossi, the sole owner and operator of the company, which affixes price tags to jewelry for other companies, pleaded guilty to two counts of filing a false tax document in federal court. The plea comes after an investigation by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation determined her business and personal tax returns failed to report income totaling $1.2 million from 2012 to 2015, resulting in underpayment of at least $407,767 in taxes.

Court documents said that the IRS found that Rossi paid employees under the table and failed to maintain or prepare business records that properly tracked expenditures, gross income, net income, profits and dividend disbursements.

According to a plea agreement, Rossi will pay full restitution to the IRS, including back taxes and interest. She is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 12, 2022.

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