Lonsdale man charged with ten counts of tax evasion

The Dakota County Attorney's Office charged a 47-year-old Lonsdale man with ten felony tax crimes today.

Bryan Nelson allegedly owes the state more than $218,000 in income tax. He has been charged with five counts of filing false state tax returns and five counts of failing to pay income taxes from 2002 to 2006, according to the Minnesota Department of Revenue.

Nelson has three previous felony convictions in Minnesota. He was convicted of two counts of aggravated robbery in 1989 and one count of receiving stolen property.

According to the current complaint, Nelson worked as a project manager for Midwestern Interiors, Inc., a Minnesota construction company, between 2002 and 2005. During that time, Nelson allegedly admitted to cashing several checks the construction company wrote to subcontractors and kept the money for personal use.

The complaint also states Nelson admitted he never paid taxes on the $600,000 he deposited into his account from these checks. The complaint adds that Nelson completed several side jobs in 2004 and admitted he was paid between $25,000 and $40,000 under the table by his customers.

Nelson allegedly owes the state more than $9,000 for 2002, $38,000 for 2003, $43,000 for 2004, $78,000 for 2005 and $48,000 for 2006 for a total of $218,000.

Each felony is punishable by up to five years in prison, up to a $10,000 fine, or both.

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