A San Jose couple was sentenced today for state income tax evasion, according to the Franchise Tax Board (FTB).
Allan Russell Stiavetti, 43, and Andrea Marie Stiavetti, 37, of San Jose, were sentenced to five months and three months, respectively, in county jail, on their guilty plea last November of failure to file state income tax returns for 1997-1999.
Allan Stiavetti worked as a sales director for an Internet service provider. The Stiavettis did not comply with repeated requests from FTB to file their state returns and failed to report nearly $1.9 million in income during this three-year period. Court records show that instead of paying their taxes, the Stiavettis used cash to purchase several big ticket items: $467,000 cash down payment on a $785,000 house, $55,000 cash on a Lincoln Navigator, and over $87,000 cash on a Porsche Carrera.
Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Edgar P. Taylor sentenced the Stiavettis. The Stiavettis each faced up to one year in county jail. Since they filed and paid their delinquent state taxes (of over $300,000) prior to sentencing, Judge Stevens reduced their sentences.
Deputy District Attorney Mike Fitzsimmons of the Santa Clara County District Attorney's Office prosecuted the case.