Ryan C. Patterson, 34, of Scottsdale, Arizona, was sentenced last week to 20 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release. He also was ordered to pay $436,194 in restitution to the IRS. Patterson was convicted on September 23, 2022, by a federal jury of three counts of tax evasion, after a two-week trial.

Patterson, a contractor specializing in remodels, directed customers to make out checks to him personally and deposited the checks into his personal checking accounts. He failed to report $1.9 million in income and avoided nearly $550,000 in taxes. He also reported a loss of $38,000 in 2016, while at the same time purchasing a primary residence for $445,000 in cash and making other lavish expenditures.

“The conviction and sentencing of the defendant are the result of an effort by the Internal Revenue Service to vindicate the rights of honest American taxpayers by holding scofflaws to account,” said U.S. Attorney Gary Restaino. “Instead of following the law, Patterson blatantly ignored it, and selfishly lined his pockets with money to which he wasn’t entitled.”

This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kevin M. Rapp and Aron Ketchel, District of Arizona, Phoenix, handled the prosecution.