By Bethany Hooper

Associate Editor

Former Ocean Pines director and interim general manager Brett Hill was found guilty this week of failing to collect and pay employment taxes.

On Monday, a federal jury convicted Hill, of Parkton and Berlin, on 16 counts of failing to collect and pay payroll taxes as chief executive officer of two telecommunications companies.

The ruling comes nearly three years after the former association employee was indicted on federal charges.

According to the U.S. Department of Justice, Hill owned and operated two telecommunications companies and was responsible for collecting and paying federal income, Social Security and Medicare taxes from his employees’ wages and filing tax returns.

A jury this week found that from the second quarter of 2016 to the fourth quarter of 2018, Hill withheld taxes from his employees’ wages at one or both of his companies but did not file tax returns or pay those taxes over to the government.

Hill did not pay over his companies’ share either. Instead of paying the taxes he withheld from his employees’ paychecks, Hill paid himself a salary and paid other expenses.

In total, Hill caused a tax loss to the United States of over $1 million, according to the Justice Department.

Now convicted, Hill faces a maximum penalty of five years for each count of failing to collect and pay taxes. He will be sentenced at a later date.

“A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors,” a news release reads.

Hill served as a board director in Ocean Pines from August of 2016 to September of 2017, during a period of financial risk taking, employee resignations and overall distrust in association leadership. It was during this same time period that the board fired general manager Bob Thompson and asked Hill to take his place in an acting capacity.

He resigned from both jobs after his financial administration resulted in losses of $1.6 million over two years, according to a September 2022 article from Ocean City Today.