Washington State

Office of the Attorney General

Attorney General

Bob Ferguson

El Mestizo Restaurant charged with filing false tax return to cover theft of sales tax

SEATTLE – The corporation that operated El Mestizo Restaurant on First Hill was charged today with filing a false or fraudulent state tax return after failing to report sales tax it collected from customers but failed to remit to the state.

The corporation already has paid $23,509 to cover the unpaid sales tax, interest and penalties, and is scheduled to be arraigned Feb. 27 in King County Superior Court.  The maximum additional penalty a corporate defendant can face for filing a false return is $10,000 per instance.

Ferguson names Kendee Yamaguchi as Director of Policy & Legislative Affairs

OLYMPIA—Attorney General Bob Ferguson today announced the hiring of Kendee Yamaguchi as Director of Policy, Legislative Affairs and External Relations.  

“Kendee has a wealth of experience on a state and federal level,” Ferguson said. “Her expertise will be invaluable as a member of my senior leadership team. She brings a strong record of legislative, legal, management and outreach experience to the position that will serve our state well.”

Attorney General Ferguson joins state-federal coalition challenging S&P ratings

"Deceptive ratings played a role in nation’s financial crisis"

OLYMPIA—Attorney General Bob Ferguson today joined a group of state attorneys general and the U.S. Dept. of Justice in filing suit against Standard & Poor’s. The group alleges the credit rating agency misled investors with regard to structured finance securities backed by subprime mortgages that were at the center of the national financial crisis.

Pasco man pleads guilty in largest public sector embezzlement case in state history

Pasco—Dennis Merle Huston of Pasco, Wash., entered a plea of guilty as charged in Franklin County Superior Court today, after admitting to a complicated embezzlement scheme involving millions of dollars, dating back to March 1990.  The state auditor’s office says this is the largest public embezzlement case in state history.