Racketeering Allegations Behind October Raid On Chinese Restaurant

By Mike Perleberg Jin Lin (left) and Hui Liu. Jian Lin is not shown. Photo by Dearborn County Sheriff's Department. (Lawrenceburg, Ind.) - The owner and managers of a Lawrenceburg Chinese restaurant are accused of failing to pay tens of thousands of dollars in taxes. Police had raided the New China Buffet at the Dearborn Plaza on October 14. The reason why was not known until just this week. On Tuesday, Dearborn County prosecutors formally charged restaurant owner Jian Lin and managers Jin Lin, his wife, and Hui Liu, his niece, with Corrupt Business Influence (level 5 felony), Theft (level 6 felony), and Money Laundering (level 5 felony). Jin Lin faces an additional charge of Perjury (level 5 felony). All three suspects are residents of Greendale. Dearborn County Special Crimes Unit investigators say New China Buffet did not pay $38,857 in taxes to the Indiana Department of Revenue for sales ranging from July 1, 2014 up until the day of the raid. During multiple visits to the restaurant, detectives noticed that multiple transactions were conducted with the cashier never closing the cash register drawer to close out each sale. “(The detective) knows from his training and experience this was a common way for restaurants to avoid documentation of sales to avoid paying state and federal taxes,” a court affidavit filed by detectives states. Jin Lin’s perjury charge stems from his signatures on state and federal tax forms declaring the income information he provided to be true and correct. Detectives had compared the tax forms to the bank records of the restaurant and its managers. An IDOR auditor told investigators that restaurants are considered cash intensive businesses and that they generally deposit between 40 and 60 percent of total deposits as cash. However, New China Buffet’s deposits were less than three percent in 2013, 2014, and 2015. The personal bank records of the restaurant managers showed their total deposits for Jin and Jian Lin were much higher than their payroll deposits. After investigating the business’ books and the Lins’ personal accounts, the IDOR auditor more that gross sales had been underreported to the tune of $555,000 from July 2014 until August 2015. During the October 14 search of the restaurant, Jin Lin allegedly told investigators that the restaurant obtains employees through a company in either Chicago or New York, but that the restaurant does not verify their identification or prepare the appropriate federal paperwork on employees. The employees are housed at a home on Beckett Landing in Greendale, she said. Detectives also say they found cash hidden in mattresses and in a freezer at the Beckett Landing home. Jin Lin, 45, and Hui Liu, 33, were each arrested on Thursday. Jian Lin, 46, has not been booked into jail. Detectives were told by Jin Lin that he is in China caring for ailing relatives.