MAUI – On March 8, 2022, former Maui resident Thomasene Kanaha-Barretto, doing business as Quick Tow LLC, was sentenced in a criminal case involving six counts of failure to file general excise tax returns (GET) for tax years 2013 to 2018, in violation of Hawaii Revised Statutes (HRS) Section 231-35. Kanaha-Barretto and Quick Tow LLC were charged separately with the six counts for failure to file annual GET returns. Kanaha-Barretto, on behalf of herself and Quick Tow LLC, previously pled guilty on October 12, 2021.

Kanaha-Barretto failed to pay a cumulative of $302,595 in GET taxes due for Quick Tow LLC over the six years. On March 8, 2022, she was ordered to pay $302,595 in restitution jointly and severally with Quick Tow LLC to the State of Hawaii, Department of Taxation at a rate of at least $500 per month, and to be paid in full by the end of the one-year court supervision.

Willful failure to file a return is a misdemeanor offense. Kanaha-Barretto faced up to one-year imprisonment and a $25,000 fine for each count. In addition, Quick Tow LLC faced up to a $100,000 fine for each count.

This investigation was coordinated by the Department of Taxation, Criminal Investigation Section, and the Department of the Attorney General.