Prosecutors say Philip Charles de Gruchy falsely claimed numerous payments kicked back to him as business expenses
NEWARK -- A federal grand jury Thursday issued new charges accusing a Park Ridge man prosecutors say helped defraud two international companies, of filing false international and corporate tax returns.
The superseding six counts accuse Philip Charles de Gruchy of stiffing the government of more than $800,000 in taxes by understating his personal taxable income and that of companies he controlled, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Authorities say de Gruchy was able to reduce his companies' stated taxable income by falsely claiming as business expenses payments that were kicked back to him.
de Gruchy, 63, was first charged in 2014 and later indicted in February 2016 along with Barbara Brown, 66, also of Park Ridge. Prosecutors say the two billed more than $3 million in fraudulent invoices for phony marketing work to Brown's employers at the time -- an unspecified toy company in Wayne -- and directed the funds to a company she and de Gruchy secretly controlled.
The couple allegedly scored another $216,000 from de Gruchy's employer at the time -- a South Plainfield suitcase manufacturer -- when the company hired Brown as a contractor without de Gruchy disclosing their relationship. Brown's work at that company was also "unnecessary, worthless or never completed," prosecutors say.
The original counts of mail fraud and substantive mail fraud carry a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, while each count of filing a false tax return could fetch up to three years, prosecutors say.
Thomas Moriarty may be reached at tmoriarty@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @ThomasDMoriarty. Find NJ.com on Facebook.