A Buffalo restaurant owner has been sentenced to a year in prison for tax evasion and employing unauthorized workers.
The U.S. Attorney's Office says Sergio Ramses Mucino, 48, owned and operated Don Tequila on Allen Street and Agave on Elmwood Avenue in the city, El Agave on Union Road in Cheektowaga and La Divina on Delaware Avenue in Kenmore.
From 2013-2015, prosecutors say Mucino evaded paying more than $1 million in income taxes. He and two others also conspired to hire at least 10 unauthorized workers for his restaurants and provided them apartments in which to live.
Mucino's co-defendants, Jose Sanchez-Ocampo and Marguin Sanchez, were previously convicted.
“Employers who knowingly hire unauthorized workers are not only contributing to the magnet that fuels illegal immigration, but these illegal practices also undercut legitimate businesses who play by the rules,” said U.S. Attorney James Kennedy.
