January 30, 2020
Sal's Pizza Italian Restaurant & Cecilia's Gelateria/Facebook
Guiseppe D'Arancio, owner of Sal's Ristorante & Pizzeria, pleaded guilty to filing false tax returns for his business. Prosecutors said he underreported the pizzeria's income by approximately $1.2 million between 2012-2016.
The owner of Sal's Ristorante and Pizzeria, a popular spot in Wildwood Crest, admitted this week to filing false income tax returns during a period of several years, federal prosecutors said Thursday.
Giuseppe D'Arancia, 60, of Cape May Court House, pleaded guilty to five counts of filing false returns that spanned from 2012-2016.
D'Arancia and another individual owned and operated the pizzeria allegedly kept two sets of accounting books, according to case documents and statements in court.
For tax years 2012 through 2016, D'Arancia filed false tax returns which underreported the pizzeria’s taxable income by approximately $1.2 million, prosecutors said. D’Arancio consequently failed to pay more than $425,000 in income taxes.
Sal's Ristorante & Pizzeria, located at 8500 New Jersey Ave., combines recipes with influences from Sicily and Brooklyn. D'Arancia and his wife, Cecilia, also operate a gelateria next door.
The case comes just more than a year after Charles Bangle, the owner of Manco & Manco in Ocean City, completed a stint in federal prison for tax evasion charges.
Each count of filing a false tax return carries a maximum potential penalty of three years in prison and a fine of at least $100,000.
