Worcester Business Journal

6 Worcester Business Journal | May 1, 2017 | wbjournal.com B R I E F S Worcester man pleads to evading tobacco taxes A Worcester businessman plead guilty to charges he defrauded the common- wealth of excise taxes on tobacco prod- ucts and submitted false tax returns. Mohamed Afeez, 32, who operated a wholesale tobacco products business in Worcester for almost two years, pleaded guilty to subscribing a false tax return and conspiracy in U.S. District Court in Boston, according to Acting U.S. Attorney William D. Weinreb. Afeez's business sold tobacco products, including cigars, smoking tobacco, smokeless tobacco and non-tobacco items to convenience stores, gas stations, and other retail businesses between late 2014 and July 2016. In an attempt to work around state excise taxes, Afeez bought loose smoking tobacco and smokeless tobacco from Pennsylvania, where those products are not taxed, according to the release. The illegal business generated more than $448,000 that was not filed on the business' 2015 income tax return. Afeez faces up to eight years in prison, although actual sentences for federal crimes are usually less than the max. T H E T I C K E R 27% Growth in deposits at Fidelity Bank, based in Leominster, between 2015 and 2016, thanks largely to a merger with Barre Savings Bank Source: Fidelity Bank $2.7M Source: New Dover Associates, Inc. Square footage of 6 Grove St. in Millbury, which Cys Trust sold to Carl Martin 2,200 Source: Kelleher & Sadowsky www.masslivemedia.com WHERE DIGITAL STRATEGIES AND CREATIVITYMEET. Massachusetts unemployment rate for March, up from 3.4 percent in February 3.6% Source: Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development Continued from previous page UMass Medical School laying off 65 The University of Massachusetts Medical School is laying off 65 employ- ees in a Shrewsbury division because it lost a MassHealth contract. The layoffs are happening at Commonwealth Medicine, UMass Medical School's public service consult- ing and operations support arm. Commonwealth Medicine has been pro- viding a series of third-party administra- tive services for MassHealth since 1999. MassHealth has instead decided to contract those services through Optum Government Solutions, and UMass will have to lay off those 65 people. MWCC to pay students to take summer classes Mount Wachusett Community College is expanding a summer program where recent high school graduates can get paid to take classes. The Academic Program Discovery Academy will let high school graduates or qualifying MWCC students take two classes over the summer for free. The program is funded through a $176,711 grant from the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education. Heywood to raise $10M for emergency expansion Heywood Healthcare is looking to raise $10 million for three major capital projects, including a new emergency department and medical office building at Athol Hospital. The Gardner health care network said the money will help it expand to accom- modate its growing patient population, and allow it to upgrade its facilities. Texas logistics provider expands to Shrewsbury Texas logistics firm KMM Corp. opened its first Massachusetts location in Shrewsbury in April. The company leased a 12,300-square- foot building at 820 Boston Turnpike. KMM has seven employees at the site. KMM's network services division has grown on a national scale over the last few months, leading to the expansion. Amount that Carmi Holdings-MA, LLC paid Latrobe Specialty Metals Distribution, Inc. for a Northborough industrial building UMass Medical School W

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