Conneaut Lake Park ex-owner gets prison term, heavy fine

The defendants used a maze of trusts and corporations to hide millions.
AKRON (AP) -- The former owner of a Pennsylvania amusement park was sentenced in federal court to 12 years and seven months in prison and fined $95,000 for tax evasion and conspiring to defraud the United States.
U.S. District Judge John Adams also sentenced Gary Harris on Tuesday to three years' probation, Justice Department officials said.
Harris, 63, of Conneaut, was convicted in March along with wife Tamara Schwentker-Harris and business manager Michael Kotula.
Prosecutors said the defendants used a maze of trusts and corporations to try to hide about $18 million in income generated by various businesses they controlled, including Conneaut Lake Park, about 85 miles north of Pittsburgh.
Didn't pay
Between Jan. 1, 1994, and July 8, 2003, the defendants paid little or no taxes on the income they earned. Harris acquired several homes, a jetway for his Conneaut ranch and an antique Mercedes sports car that he contended was worth $250,000.
Harris has been in federal custody since his arrest in July 2003. He was convicted of tax evasion for tax years 1987, 1989 and 1990. Between 1998 and 2002, when Harris was in federal prison after convictions for racketeering and income tax evasion, Kotula and Schwentker-Harris kept Harris' businesses and the conspiracy running, federal authorities said.
Kotula, of Euclid, was sentenced last month to five years and 10 months in prison, three years' probation and a $100,000 fine. He must pay $82,606 in restitution to the Internal Revenue Service.
Adams sentenced Schwentker-Harris in June to one year and three months in prison and two years' probation. She must pay $17,054 in restitution to the IRS.