Owner of local business ‘All American Papers’ arrested on tax evasion charges

Date: July 22, 2025

Contact: newsroom@ci.irs.gov

WASHINGTON — A criminal indictment was unsealed today in the District of Columbia charging two owners of a local chain of retail stores operating under the banner “All American Papers” with tax evasion, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

Ramon Roque, of the District of Columbia, was arrested today and made his initial appearance this afternoon before Magistrate Judge Matthew J. Sharbaugh in the U.S. District for the District of Columbia. Roque was released pending a further hearing in this matter on July 25 before U.S. District Court Judge Beryl A. Howell.

Joining in the announcement was Kareem Carter, Executive Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation (CI), Washington, D.C. Field Office, which is leading the investigation.

According to the indictment, Roque and a co-defendant owned and controlled multiple retail businesses in the District under different registrations, trade names, and taxpayer identification numbers. The business names included All American Papers, All American Bakery & Café, All American D.C., American Legends, and All American Sole (collectively All American Papers). The business had retail stores at multiple locations in the District, but effectively operated as a single enterprise with common payroll accounts and common bank accounts with commingled funds. The indictment alleges that between 2018 and 2020, All American Papers generated at least $14 million in revenue from the sale of their merchandise.

Notwithstanding the success of the business, Roque and his co-defendant never filed federal income tax returns for the years 2018, 2019, and 2020. The indictment further alleges that the defendants impeded and obstructed the Internal Revenue Service in the collection of taxes from All American Papers by using multiple business names and trade names for their company; obtaining multiple Employer Identification Numbers (EINs) for their company; providing false information to banks concerning the ownership of the company; and using false identity information with payroll companies so their income would not be reported to the IRS. The indictment also alleges that the defendants structured cash deposits at financial institutions to prevent banks from notifying the U.S. Treasury about their business’ income.

The indictment charges Roque with one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States government in the assessment and collection of taxes, and three counts of failure to file income tax returns for the years 2018, 2019, and 2020.

The charges in an indictment are merely allegations and every defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. The maximum penalty for conspiracy to defraud the United States is five years’ incarceration, a fine of up to $250,000, or both. The maximum statutory sentence for failing to file an income tax return is imprisonment for up to one year, a fine of $25,000, or both for each count of conviction. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes. If convicted of any offense, a defendant’s sentence will be determined by the court based on the advisory U.S. Sentencing Guidelines.

The investigation into this matter was conducted by IRS-CI. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney John W. Borchert.

IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) is the law enforcement arm of the IRS, responsible for conducting financial crime investigations, including tax fraud, narcotics trafficking, money laundering, public corruption, healthcare fraud, identity theft and more. IRS-CI special agents are the only federal law enforcement agents with investigative jurisdiction over violations of the Internal Revenue Code, obtaining a 90% federal conviction rate. The agency has 19 field offices located across the U.S. and 14 attaché posts abroad.