Date: May 15, 2023 Contact: newsroom@ci.irs.gov Greenbelt, MD — U.S. District Judge Deborah L. Boardman sentenced Edward Scott Finn of Dunkirk, Maryland, today to 16 months in federal prison, followed by two years of supervised release, for a tax evasion charge. Finn is a former Lieutenant with the Prince George's County Police Department and owned and operated Edward Finn Inc. (EFI), a private company. Judge Boardman also ordered Finn to pay restitution in the full amount of the loss, $367,765. The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Acting Special Agent in Charge Kareem A. Carter of the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation, Washington, D.C. Field Office; and Special Agent in Charge Thomas J. Sobocinski of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office. United States Attorney Erek L. Barron said, "Law enforcement officers are not above the law and we will hold them accountable—as we would anyone—for their criminal actions." "To maintain faith in our nation's tax system, all Americans, including those in positions of public trust, must be held accountable for paying their fair share," said Kareem A. Carter, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Washington D.C. Field Office. "IRS Criminal Investigation will continue to investigate those who intentionally conceal income and file false returns." "Despite Finn's position of trust as an officer of the law, he lied and stole from the government. He used his Secondary Law Enforcement Employment (SLEE) to propel his greed," said Special Agent in Charge Thomas J. Sobocinski of the FBI Baltimore Field Office. "Today's sentence articulates financial crimes do not pay." According to his plea agreement and other court documents, from approximately December 26, 1995 to April 26, 2021, Finn was a member of the Prince George's County Police Department (PGPD). Members of the PGPD were allowed to work part-time outside employment in addition to their full-time duties, known as Secondary Law Enforcement Employment (SLEE). According to the plea agreement and court documents, from 2014 to 2021, Finn used EFI and employed off-duty law enforcement officers to provide security services to apartment complexes and other businesses, primarily in Prince George's and Montgomery Counties, to manage and operate his SLEE business. Finn admitted that he underreported a total of more than $1.3 million of EFI income on his 2014 through 2019 individual income tax returns. During that time frame, Finn deposited checks payable to EFI into personal bank accounts or non-EFI bank accounts over which Finn had signature authority. Finn also created false business expenses to lower his tax due by writing checks to relatives and friends for purported services performed; and used business funds to purchase a boat, a car, and other items for his personal use. This underreported income resulted in a total tax loss to the government of $367,765. Further, Finn admitted that on April 22, 2021, as federal agents announced their presence at his front door to execute a search warrant on his residence, Finn initiated the erasure and resetting of his cellphone. Finn then opened the front door to his residence and law enforcement recovered the phone in the master bedroom. United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the IRS-CI and the FBI and for their work in the investigation and thanked the Prince George's County Police Department and the Prince George's County State's Attorney's Office for their assistance. Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy F. Hagan, Jr., who prosecuted this case.
