Oconee County businessman charged with fraud

Oconee County  businessman Marion Keith Sheriff was indicted on four counts of tax fraud

A federal grand jury has indicted an Oconee County businessman on charges of tax fraud.

According to the Department of Justice, Marion Keith Sheriff, 60, of Seneca, was indicted June 2 on four counts of tax fraud, accused of filing false tax returns.  

Sheriff operated a Seneca landscaping business. Internal Revenue Service investigators contend he failed to report about $1 million in cashed business checks as income from 2019 to 2022.

U.S. District Judge Jacquelyn D. Austin will preside over the case in Greenville. A trial date has not been set.

Sheriff faces a maximum penalty of three years in federal prison, a $100,000 fine, and one year of supervised release following any term of imprisonment.  

Sheriff is being held at the Oconee County Detention Center.