A New London dentist was sentenced Wednesday to 10 months in prison, three years of probation and was ordered to pay a $25,000 fine along with $244,541 in restitution after he pleaded guilty last July to federal tax evasion charges.

Boulos “Paul” Hanna, 66, of East Lyme was sentenced in U.S. District Court in Hartford by Judge Omar A. Williams and was ordered to report to prison on May 6.

According to court records cited in a news release, Hanna operated a dental practice in New London in a building he also owned. Hanna received rental payments from his practice for the office.

Investigators in the IRS Criminal Investigations Division discovered that Hanna filed federal income tax returns in 2010 through 2012 but did not pay the taxes owed. He was subject to collection enforcement through property liens and seized payments.

From 2013 to 2020, the court records showed, Hanna failed to file tax returns, with taxes owed totaling $244,541. Hanna attempted to hide his earnings by paying himself management fees rather than wages and operating in cash by endorsing business checks to himself.