A Rhode Island businessman has pleaded guilty to tax evasion, marking his second conviction on federal tax charges. William N. L’Europa, 60, of Cranston, admitted in federal court that he failed to pay more than $1.3 million in taxes, penalties, fees, and interest owed to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) for tax years 2007 through 2013.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Rhode Island, L’Europa entered a plea agreement requiring him to pay restitution totaling $1,367,336.08 by his sentencing date on November 12, 2025.
L’Europa was previously convicted in 2012 along with a business partner for conspiracy to defraud the United States and filing a false tax return. In that case, they underreported business receipts between 2007 and 2010 and caused an underpayment of over $500,000 in federal taxes. He was sentenced in January 2013 to serve 27 months in federal prison and ordered to file accurate amended returns and pay all outstanding taxes.
Court records show that L’Europa submitted documents in March 2019 falsely indicating minimal income so the IRS would not pursue collections at that time. In addition, authorities say he signed an Offer in Compromise with the IRS in 2022 while knowingly understating his actual personal income. The IRS later determined that L’Europa manipulated business finances and records to conceal personal expenditures paid from business accounts—these included over $10,000 spent on a motorcycle, $100,000 used to discharge a debt owed to the State of Rhode Island, a $12,000 down payment on a new truck for his wife, as well as other personal expenses covered via business credit cards.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Milind M. Shah is prosecuting the case following an investigation by IRS-Criminal Investigation.
Sentencing will be determined by a federal district judge who will consider both U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutory factors.
“Acting United States Attorney Sara Miron Bloom announced today’s conviction.”
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