IRS probe into high roller continues

The Internal Revenue Service is pressing ahead with a criminal investigation into the finances of Ramon DeSage, a high-rolling, international businessman who supplies luxury gifts to the casino industry.

Tara Mazzeo, 36, a friend and employee of DeSage's, was indicted by a federal grand jury last week on charges of lying to IRS agents when they interviewed her in July 2011 about her financial ties to DeSage.

According to the indictment, Mazzeo lied about receiving $497,000 from DeSage between September and November 2009 to help her buy a home and a luxury vehicle.

She also lied about the 2009 transfer of $350,000 from DeSage's bank accounts to the business account of Mazzeo's Tarabella LLC, the indictment alleges.

Mazzeo is to appear for arraignment on the charges in federal court Friday . She faces three felony counts of making false statements to agents assigned to IRS Criminal Investigation in Las Vegas.

Her lawyer, Charles Kelly, declined comment.

IRS agents arrested DeSage in July and charged him with running an "elaborate" Ponzi scheme.

DeSage, who holds dual citizenship in the United States and Lebanon, has used his chief Las Vegas company, Cadeau Express, and other companies to defraud investors out of tens of millions of dollars since 2005, according to a criminal complaint charging him with wire fraud.

He owes investors more than $75 million, the complaint alleges.

DeSage, who is under electronically monitored home detention, used the fraudulently obtained money to repay earlier investors, maintain his wealthy lifestyle and cover millions of dollars in gambling losses at casinos along the Strip, some of which he supplies with high-end customer goods, the complaint alleges.

The complaint describes DeSage, a Las Vegas resident since 1977, as a "prodigious gambler" who, according to Nevada gaming regulators, has lost more than $20 million on the Strip since 2006.

When Mazzeo was questioned by IRS agents, she made false statements denying that DeSage on Oct. 29, 2009, had wired $427,000 to a title company to purchase the two-story home for her at 9605 Bella Citta Street.

DeSage and Mazzeo took possession of the property as joint tenants on that date, records on file with the Clark County assessor's office show.

But on Dec. 9, 2009, DeSage gave up his interests and put the 4,632-square-foot home, which sits on a quarter-acre lot, under Mazzeo's sole ownership, the records show,

Mazzeo also lied to agents when she denied that DeSage had bought her a new Range Rover on Sept. 19, 2009, the indictment alleges.

She knew during the interview, the indictment alleges, that DeSage had wired $70,000 to a dealership on West Sahara Avenue to buy the vehicle.

Prosecutors filed the criminal complaint against DeSage in July amid word that he was about to flee to Lebanon, where he is referred to as a "sheik."

Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregory Damm told U.S. Magistrate Judge Peggy Leen that DeSage owns a 40,000-square-foot palace in Lebanon and more than $10 million in real estate holdings.

A preliminary hearing on whether to bind DeSage over for trial on the wire fraud charges was set for Tuesday, but both sides have asked Leen to continue it.

The two sides met last month and plan to meet again to try to resolve the case, court documents said.

DeSage and his lawyer, Richard Wright, have denied the allegations and promised a strong defense if the case moves forward.

Contact Jeff German at jgerman@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-8135.