Palos Hills Man Accused of Failing to Pay Nearly $1M in Gas Sales Tax

A 32-year-old Palos Hills man skipped out on paying $975,000 in gas taxes when he underreported sales at two gas stations he owns in Chicago and Calumet City, authorities allege.

Samer T. Farhan also is accused of laundering $200,000 through a bank account based in Amman, Jordan, according to the Illinois Attorney's General office.

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Farhan was arrested near his Palos Hills home, according to attorney's general office. He was charged Thursday with 28 counts of filing fraudulent sales and use tax returns, two counts of mail fraud and five counts of money laundering.

Attorney General Lisa Madigan's office alleges Farhan defrauded the state from May 2008 to April 2011 on sales recorded at Citgo Gas, 2959 W. Fulton St., Chicago, and Valero Gas, 1812 E. Sibley Blvd., Calumet City, according to a media release from her office.

“This is the largest case of gas sales tax fraud that we have uncovered yet,” Madigan said in the media release. “This is an extremely significant result that will bolster our efforts to root out tax cheats who’ve scammed the state out of millions.”

Farhan's arrest is part of an ongoing operation by Madigan's office and the Illinois Department of Revenue intended to crack down on gas stations across the state that have underreported revenues to dodge taxes.

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