Guilty plea lands Surrey real estate project manager a hefty fine for tax evasion

The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) announced that Jason Robert Hineman of Surrey, British Columbia, pleaded guilty on October 28, 2021, in the Provincial Court of British Columbia (Robson Square) to two counts of tax evasion under the Income Tax Act. Mr. Hineman was fined a total of $59,662, representing 150% of the federal income tax evaded.

A CRA investigation revealed that Mr. Hineman failed to report $208,548 in taxable income as he neglected to file his 2010 and 2011 income tax returns. The unreported income was earned from project management and other services that Mr. Hineman provided in the 2010 and 2011 tax years. It was found that in total, Mr. Hineman wilfully evaded $39,775 in federal income tax.

All case-specific information above was obtained from the court records.

Tax cheating is a crime. Falsifying records and claims, wilfully not reporting income, or inflating expenses can lead to criminal charges, prosecution, jail time, and a criminal record. From April 1, 2020, to March 31, 2021, there were 36 convictions, with court imposed fines totalling $5,172,844. These taxpayers were sentenced for wilfully evading payment amounts totalling $10,902,950 in federal tax. Out of the 36 convictions, 15 individuals were sent to jail for a total of 26.2 years.

The CRA remains dedicated to maintaining the integrity of Canada’s tax system, as well as the social and economic well-being of Canadians during these unprecedented times. The CRA continues to aggressively pursue tax evasion and false claims with all tools available to them. The CRA is continuously working towards making sure that individuals and businesses report income earned and eligible losses, and claim benefits to which they are entitled, so that important benefit programs can be administered to those who need them. As a result of COVID-19, we are seeing the increased importance of these benefits, and are working to make sure that they continue to be available to Canadians. Any individual or business who underreports income, or claims losses or benefits to which they are not entitled, including ineligible claims for COVID-19 benefits, may have to repay the benefit amounts and may be subject to other possible action.

Associated links

• Leads Program
• Voluntary Disclosures Program

Contacts

Media Relations – Regional contact
Cheryl Yeung
Canada Revenue Agency
604-666-9261
cra-arc.media@cra-arc.gc.ca

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