Date: March 1, 2022 Contact: newsroom@ci.irs.gov U.S. Attorney Trini E. Ross announced that William J. Costello, II, of Grand Island, New York, who was convicted of tax evasion, was sentenced to serve two years' probation, and ordered to pay restitution totaling $128,740.49 to the Internal Revenue Service by U.S. District Judge Lawrence J. Vilardo. Assistant U.S. Attorney Russell T. Ippolito, Jr., who handled the case, stated that Costello, a practicing attorney before his conviction, attempted to evade paying income taxes for the calendar years 2005 through 2007, and 2009 through 2012, and attempted to evade the assessment of income tax due for calendar years 2014 through 2017. Costello placed his income outside of the reach of the IRS by using his Interest on Lawyer Account (IOLA) for personal use, depositing both personal and business income into his IOLA account and then using that account to pay personal expenses. This is in violation of the rules governing IOLA accounts. From the IOLA account, among other things, Costello wrote checks to himself, his ex-wife, his current wife, and other family members. The sentencing is the result of an investigation by the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigations Division, under the direction of Thomas Fattorusso, Special Agent- in-Charge, New York Field Office.
