Restaurateur pleads guilty to felony tax charges

The former owner of now-defunct Indigo Joe's Sports Pub & Restaurant pleaded guilty in Greene County Circuit Court to two felony tax charges.

Joseph Blasingim admitted in the plea agreement he failed to pay sales taxes and employee withholding taxes. The charges were related to payments not made between June 2006 and March 2009, according to a news release from the Missouri Department of Revenue.

“The Missouri Department of Revenue works with businesses to collect the taxes that are prescribed by law,” Alana Barragán-Scott, director of the department, said in the release. “However, when individuals or businesses consistently refuse to abide by the law, the department’s Criminal Investigation Bureau works with local prosecutors to make sure that the state’s tax laws are fully enforced.”

Blasingim agreed to pay $92,380 in restitution through monthly payments of $1,710 until October 2015.

The Springfield Indigo Joe's franchise, which was located at 1440 W. Republic Road, was owned by JB Restaurants LLC.

In March 2010, JB Restaurants filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, according to Springfield Business Journal archives.

Blasingim was an officer in JB Restaurants, according to the news release.[[In-content Ad]]