A former Linden police officer could face up to three years of jail after pleading guilty to filing false tax returns, officials said.LINDEN — A former Linden police officer could face up to three years of jail after pleading guilty today to filing false tax returns, officials said.
Walter Durham, 43, allegedly failed to properly report profits he made on a rental property he owned in Plainfield between 1998 and 2006, U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman said today. Durham apparently bought the three-family rental property in 1998, and sold it for $216,667 in 2006, according to Fishman.
Durham did not report his gains from the sale in 2006, according to Fishman. Durham also reported nearly $85,000 in real-estate losses on his federal tax returns in 2007 and 2008, even though he did not own any rental property, Fishman said.
Authorities did not say what Durham paid for the house.
The former police officer, who pleaded guilty in federal court in Newark this morning, could face up to three years in prison and $250,000 in fines when he is sentenced in March of next year, Fishman said.