Wake County Restaurant Owner Charged In State Tax Cases

RALEIGH, N.C. – Wake County businesswoman Marcella Aguado De La Cruz, 49, of Youngsville, NC, was arrested on Monday, June 8, on felony tax charges filed by the North Carolina Department of Revenue. She was charged with six counts of Embezzlement of State Property.

Indictments allege that Aguado De La Cruz, owner of two restaurant entities, aided and abetted the businesses to embezzle, misapply, and convert to their own use, North Carolina Sales Taxes (State & Wake County).

One entity, Marz Fusion, LLC dba Red Monkey, embezzled approximately $145,172.77 in North Carolina Sales Taxes from March 1, 2019, through April 30, 2021.

A second entity, Marz Hospitality Group, LLC dba The Arepa Bar, embezzled approximately $33,726.93 in North Carolina Sales Tax from July 1, 2020, through May 31, 2022.

During these periods, Aguado De La Cruz was the responsible person of both business entities, and was under a duty to collect, hold in trust, and remit North Carolina and Wake County Sales Tax to the North Carolina Department of Revenue.

Aguado De La Cruz appeared before a Wake County magistrate and was placed under a $30,000 secured bond. A first appearance is scheduled for June 15, 2026, in Wake County Superior Court in Raleigh.

The charges against Aguado De La Cruz resulted from an investigation by special agents with the Department’s Criminal Investigation Division in Raleigh.