WILLIAMSBURG, Va. — The owner of a restaurant in Williamsburg was charged with nine counts of tax fraud on Friday, according to the Department of Justice.
Stephen G. Genakos, 62, is the owner of Sportsmans Grille, which operates under the business name of Sarantos, Inc.
According to the DOJ, Genakos skimmed more than $670,000 from the business since 2016, depositing more than $112,000 into his personal bank accounts and gambling more than $502,000 with the Virginia Lottery.
In 2020, Genakos listed the business for sale and in 2021, IRS agents posed as potential buyers and reached out as a part of their investigation.
While they talked with Genakos, he joked about his “magic book” and showed them the records of his misuse.
From 2016 through 2020, he also filed false tax returns for himself and his business.
Genakos has been charged with filing nine returns that understate his taxable income by more than $670,000. This caused a tax loss to the United States of approximately $113,163.
If convicted, he faces up to three years in prison for each of the nine counts.
