City Employees Bus Drivers Indicted For Tax Crimes

HONOLULU – The State Tax Department announced that a Honolulu Grand Jury returned "true bills" against two City and County of Honolulu employees and two bus drivers for attempt to evade their State of Hawai‘i income taxes and failure to file their State of Hawai‘i Individual Income Tax Returns.

Elward I. Taira, a former employee of O‘ahu Transit Service and an employee at Roberts Hawai‘i, Inc., was charged with three counts for his attempt to evade his State of Hawai‘i income taxes for the years 2002, 2003 and 2004 and three ounts for failure to file his State of Hawai‘i Individual Income Tax Returns for the years 2002, 2003 and 2004. Mr. Taira filed a false Form HW-4 and claimed "99" exemptions to instruct his employers to not withhold his State income taxes and subsequently failed to file his State of Hawai‘i Individual Income Tax Returns and committed tax evasion.

Faith K. Taira, an employee of O‘ahu Transit Service was charged with three counts for her attempt to evade her State of Hawai‘i income taxes for the years 2002, 2003 and 2004 and three counts for failure to file her State of Hawai‘i Individual Income Tax Returns for the years 2002, 2003 and 2004. Mrs. Taira filed a false HW-4 and claimed "99" exemptions to instruct her employer to not withhold her State income taxes and subsequently failed to file her State of Hawai‘i Individual Income Tax Returns and committed tax evasion.