Date: December 7, 2022 Contact: newsroom@ci.irs.gov United States Attorney Gregory J. Haanstad announced that on December 6, 2022, Matthew Browndorf was charged with eleven financial crimes associated with the Wisconsin law firm formerly known as BP Peterman. According to the indictment, Browndorf owned and operated a holding company named Plutos Sama, LLC (“Plutos Sama”). Through Plutos Sama, Browndorf owned subsidiary law firms across the United States, including BP Peterman, which was based in Brookfield, Wisconsin. Browndorf, as Plutos Sama’s CEO, was responsible for ensuring that Plutos Sama and BP Peterman appropriately collected and remitted payroll taxes, filed the appropriate payroll tax forms with the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”), remitted funds associated with their employee pension benefit plan, and remitted funds associated with their health care benefit program. The indictment alleges that Browndorf unlawfully failed to fulfill these obligations, in violation of Title 26, United States Code, Section 7202, and Title 18, United States Code, Sections 664 and 669. Browndorf is currently facing a separate federal prosecution in the District of Maryland. This matter was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation and U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kevin Knight. An indictment is merely an allegation, and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
