BOSTON — This is an official press release from the U.S. Department of Justice (USAO - Massachusetts), published as received.

BOSTON – The former manager of a Lowell, Mass. temporary employment agency has been arrested and charged with tax crimes that deprived the U.S. Treasury of approximately $980,000 in revenue.  

Siharath Panyanouvong, 56, of Dunstable, was indicted by a federal grand jury on one count of aiding and assisting in the preparation and filing of a false tax return. Panyanouvong was arrested today and released on conditions following an initial appearance in federal court in Boston.

According to the charging documents, Panyanouvong was the manager of Viscosity Inc.  It is alleged that, between approximately 2017 and 2019, Panyanouvong deliberately failed to report more than $3.5 million of Viscosity’s gross receipts to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). As a result, Viscosity allegedly avoided paying more than $980,000 in federal income taxes.

The indictment alleges that Panyanouvong, often using the alias “Mike Pan,” cashed more than $4.5 million in customer checks. Panyanouvong allegedly used a substantial portion of the cash to operate an off-the-books cash payroll for Viscosity employees and to pay himself.  

The charge of aiding and assisting in the filing of false tax returns provides for a sentence of up to three years in prison, up to one year of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.  

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Thomas Demeo, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigations in Boston made the announcement. Assistant U.S. Attorney Benjamin A. Saltzman of the Securities, Financial & Cyber Fraud Unit is prosecuting the case.

The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.