Prosecutors: Manco and Manco concealed $1 million to avoid taxes

The owners of a chain of landmark pizza shops on the New Jersey shore have been arrested on federal tax evasion charges that alleged they concealed nearly $1 million from the IRS.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office says Charles “Chuck” Bangle and his wife Mary Bangle appeared in federal court in Camden this afternoon to face charges on the 30-count indictment.Charles and Mary Bangle appeared in court Thursday in Camden to face the charges on the 30-count indictment.

They did not enter pleas, and each was released on a $100,000 unsecured bond. Charles Bangle was ordered to forfeit more than a dozen firearms as a condition of his release.

       *** Read Manco indictment ***

Authorities say they skimmed money from the pizza shops when they worked there from 2007 until they bought them in 2011 and that they also concealed their income.

Charles, 54, and Mary, 53, were arrested Thursday morning at their Somers Point home.

The couple owns the four of the incredibly popular Manco and Manco pizza shops. Three of the locations are on the Ocean City Boardwalk and are sites of ritual meals for visitors and politicians making campaign stops.

The shops had been known as Mack and Manco until they dropped the “Mack” name in 2011 in recognition that the founding families had split long ago.

Both Bangles face one count of conspiracy to evade income taxes, five counts of income tax evasion and one count of making false statements to the IRS, according to federal prosecutors. Charles Bangle also faces 23 counts structuring transactions to avoid reporting.

In a 25-page indictment unsealed Thursday, prosecutors lay out the case against the Bangles.

“Between 2007 and 2011, Charles and Mary Bangle skimmed large sums of cash from the business. Charles Bangle deposited significant amounts of that cash into their personal bank account at TD Bank in amounts less than $10,000, the amount which triggers a Currency Transaction Report from financial institutions to the U.S. Department of Treasury,” said prosecutors in a press release.

Prosecutors said that during that time Charles handled day-to-day operations of the business while Mary took care of handling cash and payroll.

“The Bangles then used the money to pay for personal expenditures. They concealed approximately $981,000 in income from the IRS, which they had a legal obligation to report on their personal income tax returns. Had they accurately reported all their income to the IRS, the Bangles would have owed an additional $336,273.”

Each of the 30 counts in the indictment carries up to five years in prison and 1 $250,000 fine, according to prosecutors.

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Copyright Associated Press / NBC 10 Philadelphia

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