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WASHINGTON — A Louisiana man pled guilty on Wednesday to conspiracy to defraud the IRS.

Court documents report that from 2011 to at least June 2019, Matthew Reck, of St. Tammany Parish, conspired to defraud the IRS by by underreporting his and other’s individual incomes.

For his personal tax returns, Reck directed his co-conspirator accountant via email to “get really creative with the 2012 taxes” and to “crush” his 2013 taxes. On both tax returns, Reck underreported the income that he earned from his two construction companies, SES Construction Consulting Group and Global Tech Solutions, which he co-owned until December 2015.

Reck also conspired with others to commit tax fraud by paying some employees from both companies “off the books” in cash. He also refused to report workers’ full earnings to the IRS and underpaid employment taxes.

The total tax loss amounted to $1,017,024.

Reck faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison, plus a period of supervised release, restitution and fees.