Fresno Woman Who Managed Her Husband’s Orthodontics Practice Pleads Guilty to Tax Charges and Agrees to Forfeit Her Mansion and BMW

FRESNO, Calif. - Pilar Rose, 51, formerly of Fresno, pleaded guilty today to tax evasion and obstructing an IRS audit, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced. Rose also agreed to forfeit her interest in more than $2.5 million of proceeds from the sale of her and her husband's mansion and BMW that authorities previously seized.

According to court records, from 2012 through 2015, Rose prepared false financial statements for her husband's orthodontics practice that significantly underreported the practice's profits. As a result, Rose evaded more than $870,000 that she and her husband owed in federal taxes.

Then, in early 2016, Rose obstructed an IRS audit of her and her husband's taxes. She altered hundreds of checks that were for the couple's nondeductible personal expenses, such as their mortgage, utilities, landscaping, pool cleaning, cars, credit cards, and children's college tuition, to make it appear as though the checks were for deductible business expenses. She also created false financial statements for her husband's orthodontics practice to match the altered checks. She provided the altered checks and false financial statements to the IRS auditors to try to avoid paying the federal taxes that she and her husband actually owed.

In June 2015, Rose had sought a $1.5 million home mortgage refinance loan on the couple's mansion located on Van Ness Boulevard in Fresno. To assure the bank of their creditworthiness and induce the bank to make the loan, Rose submitted copies of her and her husband's federal tax returns that showed significantly greater income than was reported on the actual returns they filed with the IRS. The bank declined the loan after discovering the discrepancies.

Then, in July 2015, Rose applied to a second bank for a $1,475,000 home mortgage refinance loan on the Van Ness Boulevard residence. In the application, she represented that their bank accounts had a combined balance of more than $250,000 when they actually had less than $3,000. She also submitted copies of her and her husband's federal tax returns, and a profit and loss statement, that significantly exaggerated the profitability of her husband's orthodontics practice. As a result, the second bank approved the loan, and Rose and her husband received $1,475,000 to which they were not entitled. Authorities later seized the residence.

Moreover, in September 2017, Rose purchased a new BMW sedan for approximately $90,000. She made a $25,000 down payment and financed the remaining $65,000 through a loan she obtained from a third bank. In the loan application, Rose represented that she was an attorney who made more than $600,000 per year when she actually was not an attorney. She also used the Social Security number belonging to her husband's former dental school classmate because she knew that using her real SSN would result in her having a low credit score, which may have disqualified her from receiving the loan. As a result, the loan was approved, and Rose received more than $65,000 to which she was not entitled. Authorities later seized the BMW.

This case is the product of an investigation by IRS Criminal Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joseph Barton, Michael Tierney, Alyson Berg, and Kevin Khasigian are prosecuting the case.

Rose is scheduled to be sentenced on March 17, 2025. She faces a maximum statutory penalty of five years in prison and $100,000 fine for the tax evasion charge and an additional three years in prison and a $5,000 fine for the obstruction charge. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.