Nicolo Rizzuto, known for his ties to organized crime, found guilty of tax
fraud

MONTREAL , Feb. 11 /CNW Telbec/ - Nicolo Rizzuto pleaded guilty today to tax fraud charges laid by way of indictment before the Court of Quebec . He was fined $209,200 , which represents 135% of the federal tax he tried to evade.

The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) investigation revealed that, for the 1994 and 1995 tax years, Mr. Rizzuto voluntarily contravened the Income Tax Act by not reporting foreign interest income totalling $627,906 . In addition to the fine, Mr. Rizzuto has to pay the full amount of taxes owing, including interest and any administrative penalties that apply.

It should be mentioned that Mr. Rizzuto was arrested in November 2006 as part of "Project Colisée" following an investigation by the Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit (CFSEU), of which the CRA is a partner. In October 2008 , he was found guilty of criminal charges laid against him for: possession of proceeds of crime and possession of proceeds of crime for the benefit of, under the direction of, or in association with a criminal organization.

The CRA is firmly committed to preserving the integrity of Canada's tax base and prosecutes taxpayers who deliberately try to avoid declaring their income from all sources and paying tax on that income.

Individuals who have not filed returns for previous years, or who have not reported all of their income, can still voluntarily correct their tax affairs. They will not be penalized or prosecuted if they make a full disclosure before the CRA takes any action or starts an investigation concerning them. These individuals will only have to pay the taxes owing, plus interest. For more information on the Voluntary Disclosures Program, visit the CRA Web site at www.cra.gc.ca/voluntarydisclosures.

The information in this news release was obtained from the court records.

Additional information on convictions can be found on the Media page of the CRA Web site at www.cra.gc.ca/convictions.

For further information: media: Kareen Dionne, Communications Manager, [phone], ext. 8288, Toll-free: 1-800-292-3430, ext. 8288