Macomb County man pleads guilty to writing fake checks in attempt to pay taxes
(CBS DETROIT) - A Macomb County man accused of trying to pay his taxes with fraudulent checks has pleaded guilty, Attorney General Dana Nessel announced Wednesday.
Damon Montgomery, 54, pleaded guilty to three counts of no-account check, which are felonies and punishable by two years in prison or $500.
State officials say in January 2021, Montgomery sent three checks to the Michigan Department of Treasury. The checks contained TCF Bank routing numbers and were made payable to the state for $1 million; however, they bounced due to Montogomery not having an account at TCF Bank.
Montgomery claimed to be a Sovereign Citizen and was exempted from certain Michigan laws, including paying taxes.
"Taxes pay for our schools, our roads, and our government services," Nessel said in a press release. "Cheating on taxes hurts everyone and is fundamentally unfair to everyone else who abides by the law. We will continue to work with our partners at Treasury to ensure fairness and to enforce the law."
Sentencing is scheduled for Jan. 25, 2023.