Draft Line Cleaning/Installation Businessman And Controller Plead Guilty In State Tax Case

A Mecklenburg County businessman and the controller of the business pled guilty on Monday, Sept. 14, in Wake County Superior Court to felony tax charges filed by the North Carolina Department of Revenue.

On September 14, 2026, Kristian Pedersen, 50, of Charlotte, NC, pled guilty to four felony counts of Aid and Abet Embezzlement of State Property and one felony count of Obstruction of Justice.  In addition, Janna R. Donohue, 47, of Charlotte, NC, pled guilty to one felony count of Obstruction of Justice.

Wake County Superior Court Judge Keith Gregory sentenced Pederson to two 13-month minimum, 25-month maximum prison terms for the four counts of Aid and Abet Embezzlement of State Property and a six-month minimum, 17-month maximum prison term for the one count of Obstruction of Justice.  The prison terms were ordered to run consecutively. The sentences were suspended and Pedersen was placed on supervised probation for 24 months.  As a condition of probation, Pederson was ordered to serve three days in custody at the discretion of his probation officer and be placed under electronic home monitoring for a period of 60 days.  Pedersen paid $614,334.95 in restitution prior to the plea. 

Donohue was sentenced to supervised probation for 12 months with a conditional discharge. As a condition of probation, Donohue was ordered to complete 100 hours of community service, pay a fine of $2,000.00, and cost of court. 

Information presented in court showed that Pedersen, President/Manager of CBG Draft Services, Inc., CBG Draft Services LC, LLC, CBG Draft Services NC, LLC, and Crafty Beer Guys, LLC aided and abetted the businesses to embezzle, misapply, and convert to its own use, North Carolina Sales Tax.  Pedersen aided and abetted CBG Draft Services, Inc. to embezzle, misapply, and convert to its own use approximately $288,073.78 in North Carolina Sales Tax during the period January 1, 2019 through December 31, 2022. Pedersen aided and abetted CBG Draft Services LC, LLC to embezzle, misapply, and convert to its own use approximately $263,208.31 in North Carolina Sales Tax during the period September 1, 2019 through December 31, 2021. Pedersen aided and abetted CBG Draft Services NC, LLC to embezzle, misapply, and convert to its own use approximately $9,027.72 in North Carolina Sales Tax during the period February 1, 2019 through December 31, 2021.  Pedersen aided and abetted Crafty Beer Guys, LLC to embezzle, misapply, and convert to its own use approximately $54,025.14 in North Carolina Sales Tax during the period February 1, 2016 through July 31, 2020.  Pedersen was the responsible person of the businesses, which were under a duty to collect, hold in trust, and remit Sales Tax to the North Carolina Department of Revenue.  The North Carolina Sales Tax embezzled by the businesses totaled $614,334.95.

In addition, information in court showed that Pedersen and Donohue, with deceit and intent to defraud, feloniously obstructed justice by altering records in QuickBooks of the businesses to conceal North Carolina Sales Tax charged and collected from customers.  The altering of records in QuickBooks of the businesses impeded or hindered employees of the North Carolina Department of Revenue from determining compliance with North Carolina Sales Tax laws. 

The charges against Pedersen and Donohue resulted from an investigation by special agents with the Department’s Criminal Investigations Division in Raleigh and were prosecuted by the Special Prosecutions attorneys in the office of the Attorney General.

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