Owner of Salinas security service sentenced for insurance fraud, tax evasion

The owner of a Salinas security service will spend the next five years on felony probation and serve 120 days in Monterey County Jail for worker’s compensation violations.

Anthony Vincent Perez, 36, was convicted of making misrepresentations to obtain lower workers’ compensation insurance premiums, willfully failing to file payroll tax returns and violating private patrol operator provisions.

Perez is the owner of ESA International, a company that provides private security for businesses.

In December 2012, Monterey County prosecutors began investigating allegations that Perez was paying his employees in cash and was operating without having workers’ compensation insurance. Prosecutors determined he’d been in business since 2006 but hadn’t registered with, or reported employee wages to, the state employment development department. Additionally, he was misclassifying his guards/employees as contractors rather than as employees, as required by state regulations.

In addition to jail time and probation, Perez must complete 200 hours of community service and pay more than $18,000 in fines.