A former Salem restaurant owner has been ordered to pay more than $96,000 after pleading guilty to three felony counts of tax evasion in Marion County Circuit Court, according to the Oregon Department of Revenue. The case involved failures to file required quarterly payroll tax reports and remit withheld employee taxes to the state.
State officials identified the defendant as Michael Richard Pfohl. The Department of Revenue said Pfohl pleaded guilty Feb. 19 to three class C felony counts after originally being charged with 10 counts of tax evasion. The counts covered failures to file quarterly tax reports for the first quarter of 2021, the first quarter of 2022 and the first quarter of 2023.
Under the plea agreement, Pfohl was sentenced to 48 months of supervised probation, 80 hours of community service and a $6,000 criminal fine. The Department of Revenue said he also served three days in jail beginning Feb. 20 and was ordered to pay $90,232 in restitution. Together, the restitution and fine bring the total financial obligation to $96,232.
“The plea agreement indicates that the defendant, Michael Richard Pfohl, must cooperate with DOR to pay outstanding debt owed to the state,” Deborah Love-Wagner, acting administrator of the Department of Revenue’s Collection Division, said in a public statement.
The state said the case centered on employer withholding obligations, not just unpaid business taxes. Oregon requires employers to file periodic payroll tax reports and send in taxes withheld from employees’ paychecks. The department said Pfohl failed to do that and also refused to work with the agency to pay down delinquent debt before the criminal case was filed.
Business records connect Pfohl to Donatellos Pizza Inc., a Salem company incorporated in 2012. Oregon Secretary of State records show the business was registered with Michael Pfohl listed among the incorporators.
For Salem-area employers, the case is a reminder that payroll withholding is treated differently from ordinary operating debt. Money withheld from employee paychecks is owed to tax authorities, and state officials have made clear that repeated failures to report and remit those funds can bring criminal penalties, not just collection actions. The Department of Revenue said prosecution is uncommon and that most delinquent taxpayers avoid that outcome by filing reports, communicating with the agency and following a payment plan.
