A man accused of defrauding a victim and failing to pay taxes on more than $1.1 million in unlicensed marijuana sales has waived his preliminary exam and been bound over to Ottawa County’s 20th Circuit Court.
The exam was scheduled for May 21, but court officials informed The Sentinel a brief hearing to waive proceedings had taken place remotely May 20.
Shaun Michael Brown, 48, is charged with one count of false pretenses $50,000 but less than $100,000 (a 15-year felony) and six counts of taxes-failure to file/false return (each 5-year felonies).
Brown allegedly defrauded a victim by selling him a 2021 Corvette for $95,000 and then failing to provide a valid title to the vehicle. Brown also allegedly never paid income or sales taxes from 2020 through 2022 on the vehicle sale proceeds or the over $1.1 million he earned from unlicensed marijuana sales.
The case was referred to the Michigan Attorney General’s Office by the Ottawa County Sheriff’s Department, who assisted with the investigation, along with the Michigan State Police’s Marijuana and Tobacco Investigation Section.
There are currently no additional hearings scheduled.
— Cassidey Kavathas is the politics and court reporter at The Holland Sentinel. Contact her at ckavathas@hollandsentinel.com. Follow her on X @cassideykava.
This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Man accused of fraud, skirting taxes waives prelim in Ottawa County
Reporting by Cassidey Kavathas, Holland Sentinel / The Holland Sentinel
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