LAS VEGAS - A Las Vegas dentist has admitted he provided free dental work to an IRS revenue officer in exchange for reductions of his $100,000 tax debt.
The dentist, Thomas R. Gonzales, pleaded guilty in federal court Thursday to a felony charge of unlawfully giving a gratuity to a public official. Joining him in court was former Internal Revenue Service employee Donald J. Hyde, who pleaded guilty to unlawfully accepting a gratuity.
A federal grand jury indicted both men in April on conspiracy and bribery charges.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Ray Rukstele said the events are troublesome to the IRS, which has adopted new internal controls and new oversight procedures to ensure that this type of scheme doesn't happen again.
Both defendants, who remain free on their own recognizance, face up to two years in prison when they are sentenced Jan. 5.
According to court documents, Gonzales owed more than $100,000 in taxes by the summer of 1997, and Hyde assigned himself to Gonzales' tax file on Aug. 8, 1997.
Court records indicate that Gonzales provided dental treatment to Hyde on 18 occasions from Aug. 11, 1997, through June 9, 1999.
Parties in the case disagree on the value of the dental work Gonzales, 50, performed.
Hyde, 52, admitted he prepared documentation in August and September 1997 to reduce Gonzales' tax penalty by about $19,980.
Hyde also admitted he met with Gonzales in November 1998 and reduced the dentist's monthly payment to the IRS on his outstanding liability from $5,000 a month to $3,000 a month.
Gonzales has been licensed in Nevada since March 1988. He has a dental office on the city's east side.
Attorney Booker Evans Jr., who represents Hyde, said his client was fired the day before the indictment was returned.
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