Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul has announced charges against the former owner and bookkeeper of a Rockford restaurant alleging the pair defrauded the state of Illinois out of more than $100,000 in sales taxes, according to a news release.
James Vitale, 74, of Belvidere, and Lori Rice, 52, of Rockford, were charged in Winnebago County Circuit Court with four counts of theft of governmental property over $100,000, one count of sales tax evasion, one count of filing a fraudulent sales tax return and two counts of forgery.
Vitale and Rice pleaded not guilty to the charges on Friday, the release states…