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SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- The owners of a Springville-based international multilevel marketing company have sold the business just days before starting federal prison terms for tax evasion.
Neways has been purchased by Golden Gate Capital, a San Francisco private equity firm, in a sale that closed Wednesday, according to James Watson, Neways' vice president of human resources and organizational development. Financial terms were not disclosed.
The company creates household and personal care products that are sold through private distributors. Neways employs about 1,300 people worldwide, including about 550 in Utah, and has offices in 23 countries. It was founded in 1987 by Thomas and Leslie DeeAnn Mower.
The Mowers, who had each owned 50 percent of the company, divorced in July 2000. Last year, the Mowers were convicted by a jury of one count of conspiracy to defraud and six counts of tax evasion, stemming from a 2003 indictment. Federal prosecutors said the two cashed an estimated $3.2 million in overseas commission checks without reporting the money to the IRS, avoiding about $1 million in taxes.
The Mowers have been ordered to surrender to federal officials on Monday to begin serving their prison terms. Thomas Mower was sentenced to two years, nine months in federal prison and fined more than $75,000. Leslie Mower was sentenced to two years, three months in federal prison and ordered to pay a $60,000 fine. Both were sentenced to 36 months of supervised release after they serve their prison terms.
In a statement Wednesday, the Mowers described the decision to sell Neways as "one of the hardest decisions" in their lives. "But we believe it is in the best interests of ourselves, employees and distributors to make the change at this time."
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On the Net: http://www.neways.comhttp://www.goldengatecap.com/
(Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
