California union director faces grand theft, perjury charges. Here’s what the complaint says

Former SEIU California Executive Director Alma Hernández and her husband, Jose Moscoso, are facing 13 felonies in a criminal complaint filed Oct. 4 in Sacramento County Superior Court.

Hernandez and her husband, Jose Moscoso, are accused of theft and tax evasion worth about $236,000. The felony charges include grand theft, perjury, filing false income taxes and failing to pay unemployment and disability insurance taxes, according to the complaint.

The union announced that Hernandez resigned from her position on Wednesday.

Her transfers from a political action committee to Moscoso in 2014 caught the attention of a Fair Political Practices Commission investigator during a routine audit in 2018, setting off an investigation into the couple’s LA-based HVAC business, according to the complaint.

Hernandez is accused of making $11,400 in fraudulent payments to Moscoso from a political action committee when she was the committee’s treasurer and SEIU California’s political director, according to the complaint. The committee supported a state Senate bid by former Democratic Assemblyman Jose Solorio, of Santa Ana.

Hernandez identified the payments, which were quickly transferred to an account shared by the couple, as reimbursement for catering services for campaign volunteers, when in reality Moscoso didn’t provide any food, the complaint says.

The couple allegedly under-reported income by $1.4 million for their business, LA Duct Company, from 2014 through 2018, dodging $143,000 in taxes, according to the complaint.

And Moscoso allegedly paid his employees under the table, avoiding paying about $80,000 in unemployment insurance taxes and about $3,100 in disability insurance, the complaint says.

The charging documents include a white collar crime enhancement that would require the couple to serve time in state prison, saying the couple’s pattern of felony conduct resulted in a loss to the state Franchise Tax Board of more than $100,000.

The complaint charges the couple with the following 13 counts, all based in Sacramento County.

▪ Count one — Grand theft

On or around Oct. 23, 2014, Hernandez allegedly took $7,200 from the Working Families for Solorio for Senate 2014 Political Action Committee.

▪ Count two — Grand theft

On or around Oct. 30, 2014, Hernandez allegedly took $4,500 from the same committee.

▪ Count three — Perjury

On or around June 24, 2015, Hernandez identified the two payments from the Solorio fundraising committee to Moscoso as being related to food services, knowing they weren’t.

▪ Count four — Filed false income tax return with intent to evade

On or around Oct. 15, 2015, Hernandez and Moscoso allegedly under-reported income on their 2014 California income tax return by $65,165, avoiding $6,181 in taxes.

▪ Count five — Filed false income tax return with intent to evade

On or around Oct. 15, 2016, Hernandez and Moscoso allegedly under-reported income on their 2015 state income tax return by $102,721, avoiding $9,744 in taxes.

▪ Count six — Filed false income tax return with intent to evade

On or around Nov. 2, 2018, Hernandez and Moscoso allegedly under-reported income on their 2016 tax return by $176,608, avoiding $16,697 in taxes.

▪ Count seven — Filed false income tax return with intent to evade

On or around April 15, 2018, Hernandez and Moscoso under-reported income on their 2017 return by $416,734, avoiding $41,316 in taxes.

▪ Count eight — Filed false income tax return with intent to evade

On or around April 15, 2019, Hernandez and Moscoso allegedly under-reported their 2018 income by $666,646, avoiding $69,545 in taxes.

▪ Count nine — Failed to file report with Employment Development Department

Between Jan. 1, 2017 and June 30, 2020, Moscoso allegedly failed to file quarterly reports with EDD detailing wages and contributions paid to employees.

▪ Count 10 — Failed to pay unemployment and training tax

Between Jan. 1, 2017 and Sept. 30, 2020, Moscoso allegedly failed to pay $8,865 in unemployment insurance and $150 in employment tax training on behalf of LA Duct Cleaning.

▪ Count 11 — Failed to pay disability insurance

Between Jan. 1, 2017 and Sept. 30, 2020, Moscoso allegedly failed to pay $3,098 in disability insurance to EDD on behalf of workers

▪ Count 12 — Failed to file employment tax returns with intent to evade paying taxes

Between Jan. 1, 2017 and Sept. 30, 2020, allegedly Moscoso failed to file a tax return for LA Duct Cleaning showing $316,831 in wages paid to employees.

▪ Count 13 — Failed to collect and pay personal income tax

Between Jan. 1, 2017 and Sept. 30, 2020, allegedly Moscoso failed to pay $4,588 in personal income tax on behalf of LA Duct Cleaning.

▪ Special Allegation — Aggravated white collar crime with loss over $100,000

Hernandez and Moscoso’s alleged pattern of felony conduct resulted in a loss by the Franchise Tax Board of more than $100,000, subjecting them to additional punishment.

This story was originally published October 13, 2021 at 1:05 PM with the headline "California union director faces grand theft, perjury charges. Here’s what the complaint says."