Beachwood Car Trader Awaits Sentencing for Sales Tax Evasion

He told dealers that he wanted their luxury cars to help a children's cancer charity, but Carl F. Monto sold them overseas and skipped more than $500,000 in state sales taxes. For that, he faces up to seven years in prison.

Monto, 54, of Beachwood, pleaded guilty Thursday to a second-degree charge of theft by deception anda third-degree count of failing to pay tax, according to information from acting New Jersey Attorney General John J. Hoffman's office. The hearing took place in a Monmouth County courtroom in Freehold.

His plea bargain includes a recommendation for seven years behind bars and relinquishing $537,784 in assets frozen by the state in August 2014. Prosecutors agree not to block his wife Denise's entry into pretrial intervention.

Judge Anthony Mellaci scheduled Monto's sentencing for May 15. He remains in the Monmouth County Correctional Institution on $200,000 bail.

Monto admitted evading state sales taxes totalling $264,806 on 56 high-end cars by presenting a charitable exemption certificate for Tri County Charity Center, Inc., using fake identifications and driver's licenses. He sold the cars and paid the charity's president $100 per car as quid pro quo for using the certificate, authorities said.

Buyers wired money and Monto converted it into cashier's checks to cover his tracks, investigators said.

In September 2012,. the New Jersey Division of Community Affairs (DCA) settled fraud allegations against the Montos and Tri County's president for $65,000, including $18,000 for the NYU Langone Medical Center. The Montos dissolved their unlicensed franchise, I Buy Cars For You, LLC, which they ran in their Ocean Avenue house.

Following the settlement, the Montos created I Buy Consulting, LLC, claiming that they bought cars for dealerships and leasing firms, which allowed them to avoid the seven-percent sales tax, authorities said. Montos admitted evading more than $250,000 in taxes on 64 cars through fake exemption certificates

The couple dealt in Mercedez Benz, BMW and other high-end cars that were especially sought by buyers in countries where they weren't on the market, authorities said. Cars were shipped to Russia, China, South Korea, Finland, Sweden, Lithuania, Germany and Canada, among others, authorities said.

The New Jersey Division of Criminal Justice web page contains a portal to report illegal activities such as financial crimes and corruption confidentially. The toll-free tip line is 866-TIPS-4CJ (866-847-7425).