Rene Medina, 61, of Atherton, owner of a Colma casino, and his niece and nephew, will appear in San Francisco federal court Thursday, March 23 on charges of filing false federal income tax returns and various other charges, the U.S. Attorney’s Office reported.
Mr. Medina is the owner of Lucky Chances Casino on Hillside Boulevard in Colma. His niece and nephew are Phyllis Reyes Cuison of South San Francisco and Rawlin Reyes of Fremont.
In addition to allegedly filing false income tax returns, Mr. Medina is accused of evading his personal income taxes. His niece and nephew were indicted on conspiracy charges.
Mr. Medina reportedly charged about $2.6 million in bogus business expense from the income of the casino. According to the U.S. Attorney’s office, $245,161 of the $2.6 million went to furniture for Mr. Medina’s Atherton home and a 2000 Mercedes Benz.
Ms. Cuison and Mr. Reyes reportedly helped funnel the cash
back to Mr. Medina by pushing checks from the casino through various business entities that they owned, according to the U.S. Attorney’s office.
In all, the government lost about $973,841, according to the office.
Mr. Medina was released from bail on a $6 million bond. Ms. Cuison and Mr. Reyes were each released from custody on a $500,000 bail bond.
— Bay City News
