Dominican Republic Brothers Sentenced for Tax Fraud and Drug Conspiracy On December 30, 2013, in Anchorage, Alaska, Joel Santana-Pierna and Abel Santana-Pierna, citizens of the Dominican Republic residing in Alaska, were sentenced to 135 months and 72 months in prison, respectively. In addition, they were ordered to pay $559,755 in restitution to the IRS and agreed to forfeit approximately $130,000 obtained as part of their drug trafficking activities. On May 2, 2013, Joel Santana-Pierna pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute cocaine and conspiracy to defraud the government. On July 23, 2013, Abel Santana-Pierna pleaded guilty to the same charges. According to court documents, from January 2010 to March 2012, Joel Santana-Pierna led his conspirators, including his brother Abel, in distributing cocaine in the Anchorage area. He also arranged to import over two kilograms of cocaine into Alaska for distribution. In addition to their cocaine smuggling scheme, the Santana-Pierna brothers conspired to use stolen Puerto Rican identities to file false income tax returns and obtain large income tax refunds to which they were not entitled. Conspirators in the income tax fraud scheme obtained the identities of more than 3,000 individuals, including names and social security numbers. Using this stolen information, the brothers and their co-conspirators completed false returns and submitted them to the IRS. Georgia Couple Sentenced for Identity Theft and Fraud Charges On December 20, 2013, in Jacksonville, Fla., Estella D. (Washington) Wright and her husband, Dorian D. Wright, both of Brunswick, Ga., were sentenced to 51 months and 15 months in prison, respectively. The couple was also ordered to pay $210,737 in restitution to the IRS and $1,500 to a victim of the identity theft scheme. Both pleaded guilty on June 26, 2013. According to court documents, from at least September 2007 through 2008, Estella Wright stole the means of identification from individuals through her employment at a temporary staffing agency. Wright then provided these means of identification to her co-conspirators to fraudulently file tax returns and obtain income tax refunds. The fraudulently filed tax returns caused a total of $816,384 to be directly deposited into bank accounts held in the name of either Estella or Dorian Wright. Florida Man Sentenced for Role in Tax Refund Fraud Scheme On December 19, 2013, in Tampa, Fla., Quincy Wimberly was sentenced to 84 months in prison. Wimberly pleaded guilty on September 5, 2013 to theft of government property and aggravated identity theft. According to court documents, from at least as early as January 2011, Wimberly engaged in stolen identity tax refund fraud. He was responsible for over sixty fraudulently filed tax returns and fraudulently obtained tax refunds in excess of $175,000. Wimberly’s co-conspirators, Nikia Williams and Porscha Williams, were previously sentenced to 66 months and 48 months in prison, respectively, for their roles in the scheme. Defendant Sentenced in False Tax Return and Identity Theft Refund Fraud Scheme On December 19, 2013, in Miami, Fla., Behrmann Desenclos, of Lauderhill, was sentenced to 108 months in prison, three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $1,358,156 in restitution. Desenclos previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. According to court documents, Desenclos, Rachelle Beaubrun and Louis Richard Nemorin were involved in a scheme of submitting false claims for refund. The defendants prepared various federal income tax returns falsely claiming refunds on behalf of foreign nationals who had previously been deported from the United States and who were ineligible to receive any refund. The returns were based on jobs with companies that had no employees; based on employment with companies or offices where the taxpayer named on the return did not work; utilized Schedule C to falsely claim deductions for nonexistent business expenses; and claimed First Time Homebuyer Credits for residences which the taxpayers named on the returns did not actually purchase. Desenclos and Beaubrun also acquired stolen identification information such as names, dates of birth, and social security numbers, from Nemorin. The defendants prepared fraudulent federal income tax returns through Divine Tax and Financial Services and Global-Tech Financial Management, LLC. For tax years 2008 and 2009, the defendants caused the submission of federal income tax returns which falsely claimed refunds amounting to more than $2.6 million. On August 20, 2013, Beaubrun was sentenced to 102 months in prison. Nemorin was sentenced to 60 months in prison. North Carolina Man Sentenced for Identity Theft and Mail Fraud On December 17, 2013, in Richmond, Va., Brandon Lee Caudle, of Charlotte, N.C., was sentenced to 48 months in prison, three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $16,135 in restitution to the IRS. Caudle pleaded guilty to identity theft and mail fraud. According to court documents, in 2011 and 2012, Caudle received stolen personal identifiable information about inmates at the Federal Correctional Complex in Petersburg. Caudle electronically prepared tax returns using the names and other stolen identifying information of inmates. Each of these returns was accompanied with false W-2’s, reflecting false earnings and withholdings from a restaurant in Charlotte, N.C., that Caudle previously owned. Tennessee Woman Sentenced for Theft of Government Funds and Identity Theft On December 13, 2013, in Memphis, Tenn., Temptress Pope was sentenced to 48 months in prison, three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $870,252 in restitution for filing false tax returns and ID theft. According to court documents, at different times from 2008 through 2012, Pope and other individuals obtained the names, birth dates and Social Security numbers of people without their knowledge or consent, and filed numerous federal tax returns claiming refunds using this information. Pope and others opened bank accounts in the name of fictitious businesses and directed the tax refunds associated with the false tax returns to be electronically deposited into these accounts. Pope and her associates used different versions of tax preparation software to electronically file hundreds of false tax returns. Longtime Tampa Tax Fraudster Sentenced for Tax Fraud and Identity Theft On December 12, 2013, in Tampa, Fla., Marterrance Q. Holloway was sentenced to 116 months in prison and ordered to forfeit $238,573. In addition, Holloway will forfeit items purchased with proceeds of the fraud and other substitute assets, to include two 2010 Chevrolet Camaros, a 2011 Dodge Charger, a 2005 Dodge Charger, a motor scooter, an iPad computer, assorted jewelry and $779 in cash. Holloway pleaded guilty on July 24, 2013 to charges related to tax fraud and aggravated identity theft. On September 23, 2013, Holloway’s co-defendant, Maurice Larry was sentenced to 101 months in prison for his involvement in this case. According to court documents, Holloway and Larry were filing fraudulent tax returns from a Tampa hotel room in September 2010. Inside the hotel room were four computers, which were used to electronically file fraudulent tax returns in the names of deceased individuals, along with website pages, ledgers, and lists of stolen names, dates of birth and social security numbers. Multiple reloadable debit cards were also found in the hotel room, along with ATM receipts for cash withdrawals and approximately $3,700 in cash. Further, in August 2011, Holloway used a fraudulent debit card at a local bank ATM machine that had been loaded with the proceeds of a fraudulently filed tax return in the amount of more than $9,800. Alabama Man Sentenced for Stolen Identity Tax Refund Fraud Scheme On December 2, 2013, in Montgomery, Ala., Clarence Hicks, of Montgomery, Ala., was sentenced to 57 months in prison, three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $210,555 in restitution for his role in a stolen identity refund fraud scheme. Hicks previously pleaded guilty to filing a false claim for a federal tax refund and to aggravated identity theft. According to court documents, Hicks had access to an IRS Electronic Filing Identification Number assigned to another person. Hicks used that number to file false federal income tax returns in the names of stolen identities claiming more than $300,000 in fraudulent refunds. Five Defendants Sentenced in Tax Refund Scam On December 2, 2013, in Cincinnati, Ohio, Ellis Maurice Scott was sentenced to 102 months in prison, three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $477,490 in restitution to the IRS. Scott pleaded guilty in April 2013 to conspiracy to submit false claims for federal income tax refunds and aggravated identity theft. According to court documents, between January 2011 and September 2012, Scott and four co-defendants participated in a scheme to obtain false claims for income tax refunds from the IRS by electronically filing false 2010 and 2011 federal income tax returns. Scott purchased names, Social Security numbers and dates of births of individuals from a variety of sources, including employees at nursing homes and hospitals. These stolen identities were used to file false federal tax returns. The false income tax returns contained fabricated information which often qualified the taxpayer listed on the return to receive the Earned Income Tax Credit and the American Opportunity Tax Credit. The four co-defendants were sentenced in October and September 2013 to the following terms: - Bridgette Jones was sentenced to 61 months in prison and ordered to pay $477,490 in restitution to the IRS. - Dione Howard was sentenced to 12 months and one day in prison and ordered to pay $30,120 in restitution to the IRS. - Latasha Hampton was sentenced to 10 months in prison and ordered to pay $84,090 in restitution to the IRS. - Marnay Love was sentenced to 8 months in prison and ordered to pay $84,090 in restitution to the IRS and $17,350 in restitution to ACE Cash Express. Arkansas Man Sentenced for Tax Refund Fraud Scheme and Identity Theft On November 26, 2013, Fayetteville, Ark., Owen Wheeler, of Everton, Arkansas, was sentenced to 100 months in prison, three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $132,411 in restitution to the IRS. On June 5, 2013, Wheeler pleaded guilty to filing false claims for tax refunds, stealing federal tax refund money, and aggravated identity theft. According to court documents, from September 2011 through May 2012, Wheeler used the identities of numerous persons to file fraudulent claims for tax refunds using online tax software. He also opened a bank account in the name of another person, into which he deposited the United States Treasury checks that were issued in response to his fraudulent tax refund claims. Florida Man Sentenced in Connection with Stolen Identity Tax Fraud Scheme On November 26, 2013, in St. Louis, Mo., Dwayne Denard Johnson, Wesley Chapel, Fla., was sentenced to 36 months in prison. In August 2013, Johnson pleaded guilty to his role in a stolen identify tax fraud scheme lead by his wife, Tania Henderson, from their home in suburban Tampa. According to court documents, Johnson helped his wife and others use the identities and social security numbers of hundreds of people to file phony tax returns and collect the refunds generated by those returns. In all, the scheme has been found to have involved more than 400 stolen identities claiming more than $1.8 million in refunds. Henderson was sentenced in July 2013 to 144 months in prison. South Carolina Woman Sentenced for Tax Fraud On November 22, 2013, in Columbia, S.C., Penny Maria Smith, aka Penny Maria Gardner, aka Penny Gardner Faile, of Kershaw, S.C. was sentenced to 30 months in prison, three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $82,665 in restitution. Smith pleaded guilty to fraud related to identification documents. According to evidence presented at the change of plea hearing, Smith, a tax preparer, filed false tax returns using others’ identifying information without their authority. Some of the victims had employed Smith as their tax preparer to file their taxes in previous years. However, Smith used their information or their dependents’ identifying information during additional tax years without their permission. Smith admitted to filing 86 false claims with the IRS, totaling $82,665 in loss. Florida Man Sentenced for Tax Fraud On November 20, 2013, in Panama City, Fla., Anthony Q. Atkinson was sentenced to 37 months in prison, three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $23,496 in restitution to the IRS. According to court documents, Atkinson and others were involved in a tax scheme whereby they conspired to file false federal income tax returns with the IRS claiming refunds to which the defendants knew they were not entitled. As part of the scheme, conspirators would provide the personal identifying information of other individuals to Atkinson, who would then file false tax returns for each of those individuals. The returns transmitted in this scheme had notable similarities, including fabricated taxable interest income and names of financial institutions, false amounts of Social Security income and fabricated amounts of tax withholdings. Florida Woman Sentenced for Tax Refund Fraud On November 19, 2013, in Tampa, Fla., Porscha Williams was sentenced to 48 months in prison and ordered to pay a $9,116 money judgment, the proceeds of the charged criminal conduct. Williams was found guilty in September 2013 to theft of government property and aggravated identity theft. According to court documents, Williams engaged in stolen identity tax refund fraud from as early as March 2011. She was responsible for the filing of more than 30 fraudulent tax returns claiming refunds totaling in excess of $175,000. Porscha Williams’ sister, Nikia Williams, was sentenced in June 2013 to 66 months in prison for her role in the scheme. Another co-defendant, Quincy Wimberly, is currently awaiting sentencing. New Jersey Man Sentenced in Tax Refund Fraud Scheme On November 15, 2013, in Newark, N.J., Manuel Rodriguez, of New Brunswick, N.J., was sentenced to 48 months in prison, three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $5.2 million in restitution. Rodriguez previously pleaded guilty to an information charging him with conspiracy to defraud the United States, theft of government property and aggravated identity theft. According to court documents, Rodriguez participated in a scheme that caused more than 8,000 fraudulent United States income tax returns to be filed claiming more than $65 million in tax refunds. Rodriguez and others obtained personal identifiers, such as dates of birth and social security numbers, belonging to Puerto Rican citizens. They used those identifiers to create fraudulent 1040 forms, which falsely reported wages purportedly earned by the “taxpayers” and taxes purportedly withheld, to create the appearance that the “taxpayers” were entitled to tax refunds. Alabama Man Sentenced for Role in Identity Theft and Tax Refund Scheme On November 14, 2013, in Montgomery, Ala., Kevin Jackson was sentenced to 102 months in prison, three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $150,840 in restitution. Jackson had previously pleaded guilty to access device fraud and aggravated identity theft. According to court documents, Jackson possessed a storage locker in which law enforcement authorities found a computer, three cellular telephones, at least 500 names and Social Security numbers of identity theft victims and at least 70 prepaid debit cards, all tied to a scheme to obtain fraudulent federal tax refunds by causing federal tax returns to be filed in the names of stolen identities. Leader of Massive Tax Refund Fraud Scheme Sentenced On November 13, 2013, in New York, N.Y., Melvin Duarte was sentenced to 120 months in prison, three years of supervised release and ordered to forfeit $15 million. In June 2013, Duarte pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States, one count of conspiracy to steal mail and one count of mail theft. According to court documents, Duarte participated in a massive tax and mail theft scheme. As part of the scheme, co-conspirators operating out of the Dominican Republic and other places electronically filed thousands of fraudulent federal tax returns, seeking tens of millions of dollars in tax refunds. The fraudulent returns were filed using social security numbers and other identifying information stolen from residents of Puerto Rico. Each of the tax returns at issue falsely represented that the taxpayer resided at an address in the Bronx, N.Y., where the refund check was to be sent. The checks were then stolen by letter carriers assigned to the mail routes where the checks were sent who had been recruited beforehand to participate in the scheme. The letter carriers participating in the scheme were paid a kickback for each check they stole. The letter carriers passed the checks on to other co-conspirators, who cashed them at various banks and check-cashing businesses located in the U.S. and the Dominican Republic. Texas Woman Sentenced for Identity Theft and Wire Fraud Scheme On November 12, 2013, in Sherman, Texas, Lynetta Mae Washington, of Denton, Texas, was sentenced to 63 months in prison, five years of supervised release and ordered to pay $407,448 restitution. Washington pleaded guilty on November 28, 2012 to two counts of making false claims, one count of misuse of a Social Security Number and one count of wire fraud. According to court documents, in January 2007, Washington fraudulently assumed the identities of her father-in-law and deceased mother to present the IRS with two falsified 2006 Income Tax Returns in which she claimed a total of $5,730 in tax refunds. Washington also knowingly submitted a written Renewal Application for Loan Officer License with the Texas Department of Savings and Mortgage Lending in which she fraudulently claimed her mother’s Social Security Number as hers in order for her license to be renewed. Furthermore, Washington admitted that while working as a loan officer on behalf of one or more mortgage companies from 2006 to 2009, she collected a fee for providing fictitious employment and income information on a mortgage application in order to secure the loan. Dallas Man Sentenced for Conspiracy to File False Claims for Refunds On November 12, 2013, in Sherman, Texas, Moses Mukuka, of Dallas, was sentenced to 46 months in prison, three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $1,463,116 in restitution. In addition, Mukuka will be deported after he completes his prison term and supervised release. According to court documents, Mukuka entered into one conspiracy with another individual advertising himself as an accounting student, which he was not, and offered to do income tax returns for a $10 fee. Mukuka received paperwork from students to prepare their taxes and then sent the information out-of-state to the other individual to prepare the tax returns. The tax returns were submitted to the IRS with false information, including the number of dependents, claims as head-of-household, and other fictitious entries designed to increase the refund amount. Mukuka then distributed a small portion of the actual refund to the taxpayer, representing it was the entire refund. Mukuka admitted that he was aware the tax returns were false. In the other conspiracy, Mukuka and his co-conspirators acquired the personal identification information of others, including their Electronic Filing Identification Numbers, and they used that information to file false tax refund claims with the IRS. Tax Credit Refund Conspirators Sentenced On November 7, 2013, in Philadelphia, Pa., Paul Rawls, of Philadelphia, was sentenced to 51 months in prison. Rawls pleaded guilty on June 25, 2013 to conspiracy and filing a false claim. On October 9, 2013, Jonathan Brownlee, a tax preparer, was sentenced to 24 months in prison. Rawls and Brownlee were also ordered to pay $197,385 in restitution. According to court documents, Rawls and Brownlee conspired with two others in a tax fraud scheme that sought to bilk the government of over $600,000. The two remaining conspirators await sentencing. The scheme involved filing false tax claims by obtaining and using the personal identifying information of several individuals, including their social security numbers, sometimes under false pretenses. The conspirators used the information to prepare and file bogus tax returns claiming fraudulent refunds and directed the refunds to be deposited into bank accounts that the conspirators controlled. The tax returns fraudulently reported that the individuals for whom they prepared the returns were entitled to receive a $7,500 refundable tax credit under the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008. The returns were false because those individuals had not purchased new homes and thus were not eligible to receive the refundable tax credit. Some of the individuals, in whose name the returns had been prepared and filed, were not aware that the conspirators used their social security numbers for the purpose of filing the false returns. Debt Collection Employee and Son-in-Law Sentenced for Identity Theft Tax Scheme On November 1, 2013, in Montgomery, Ala., Quentin Collick, of Montgomery, Ala., and Deatrice Williams, of Duluth, Ga., were sentenced to 85 and 51 months in prison, respectively. Collick and Williams were convicted by a jury of conspiring to file false claims, wire fraud, and aggravated identity theft. Collick was also convicted of three counts of theft of public funds. Corey Thompson, a co-conspirator, was previously sentenced to 30 months in prison. Based on evidence introduced at trial and court documents, Williams worked for a debt collection company located in Norcross, Ga. As an employee, Williams had access to a database that stored names, social security numbers and dates of birth of individuals who owed medical debts. Williams stole the identities of a number of these individuals and provided the stolen information to Collick, her son-in-law. Collick and Thompson used the stolen identities to file false tax returns and fraudulently claim tax refunds. In 2011 and 2012, Thompson worked as an independent contractor for a cable company installing cable and Internet access for customers. To conceal the filing of the false tax returns, Thompson used his specialized knowledge and equipment to shut down and hijack his customers’ Internet service, and along with Collick, filed false tax returns using the customers’ Internet access, making it appear as if the false tax returns were being filed by the customers. Thompson and Collick then directed the tax refunds to be placed on pre-paid debit cards. However, some of those cards were intercepted by the United States Postal Service. Former United States Postal Service Mail Carrier Sentenced for Role in Stolen Identity Refund Fraud Scheme On October 31, 2013, in Montgomery, Ala., Vernon Harrison was sentenced to 111 months in prison, three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $82,791 in restitution. Harrison was convicted on July 3, 2013, following a jury trial, of conspiracy to file false claims, mail fraud, aggravated identity theft and embezzlement from the mail. According to the evidence presented at the trial, Harrison was a United States Postal Service mail carrier who was recruited to join a stolen identity refund fraud conspiracy. Members of the conspiracy used stolen identities to file false tax returns, which claimed fraudulent tax refunds. The returns were filed from various locations, including houses and hotels around Montgomery and Birmingham, Ala. The tax refunds were placed on debit cards that were mailed to addresses along Harrison’s postal route. Harrison stole the debit cards from the mail and provided them to a co-conspirator in exchange for cash. During this period Harrison stole over 100 debit cards from the mail for his co-conspirators. Former NFL Player Sentenced for Federal Tax Fraud Conspiracy On October 29, 2013, in Orlando, Fla., Freddie L. Mitchell II was sentenced to 37 months in prison and three years of supervised release. Mitchell pleaded guilty on March 8, 2013 to conspiracy to file a false tax claim with the government. According to court documents, on November 30, 2009, the IRS determined that a fraudulent 2008 Form 1040 claiming a $1,968,288 tax refund had been filed in the name of a professional athlete. Agents soon learned that the professional athlete had been introduced, by Mitchell, to former IRS employee Jamie Russ-Walls. Russ-Walls indicated that she and her husband, Richard Walls, worked in the tax preparation business and could get additional money back from the IRS because of grey areas in his tax returns. The athlete eventually made a $100,000 down payment to Mitchell towards the tax preparation fee which Mitchell split with Russ-Walls and Walls. They then electronically submitted a fraudulent 2008 Form 1040, in athletes name, to the IRS without his knowledge. The form included false business losses totaling $5,367,775, resulting in a fraudulent refund of $1,968,288. The athlete never had any involvement in these businesses and never had provided the information on the tax schedule to Mitchell, Russ-Walls, or Walls. The false return also included paperwork asking the IRS to directly deposit the refund into the bank accounts of Mitchell and Russ-Walls. The athlete subsequently learned of the fraudulent activity when the IRS rejected his regular tax return that he filed. During the investigation, it was discovered that five other false 2009 returns totaling $2,264,005 had been submitted by Mitchell, Russ-Walls and Walls. Each of these claims had been accompanied by false W-2 forms showing wages in the millions of dollars from Chameleon Enterprises, LLC. Mitchell had incorporated this business in 2003, listed himself as the manager, and opened a mailbox in Kathleen, Florida to receive correspondence. When contacted by the IRS about the wages allegedly paid to these five individuals, Mitchell falsely verified their employment and income. Records checks later revealed that Chameleon actually had been dissolved as a corporation by the State of Florida in 2007 and therefore did not pay any wages in 2009. On February 1, 2013, Jamie Russ-Walls was sentenced to five years of probation. On February 14, 2013, Richard Walls was sentenced to 37 months in federal prison. Defendant Sentenced in $14 Million Identity Theft Tax Refund Fraud Scheme On October 25, 2013, in Miami, Fla., Serge St-Vil was sentenced to 96 months in prison, three years of supervised release and ordered to forfeit $7 million. St-Vil previously pleaded guilty to wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. According to court documents, in 2010, St-Vil, Muller Pierre and Finshley Fanor were involved in a scheme to file fraudulent and unauthorized tax returns seeking refunds. During the course of the scheme, there were over 5,000 fraudulent returns submitted to the IRS seeking over $14 million in refunds. Nearly all of these returns were submitted in the names of deceased persons. St-Vil was responsible for the filing of thousands of these returns using an Electronic Filing Identification Number obtained by Fanor. On June 26, 2013, Muller Pierre, of North Miami Beach, was sentenced to 57 months in prison. On May 22, 2013, Finshley Fanor, of Lauderhill, was sentenced to two years of probation. Former Alabama Tax Return Preparer Sentenced for Tax Fraud and Aggravated Identity Theft On October 24, 2013, in Montgomery, Ala., Bridgett Terry-Sankey was sentenced to 24 months and one day in prison. Terry-Sankey pleaded guilty on June 18, 2013, to one count of filing a false claim and one count of aggravated identity theft. According to court documents, Terry-Sankey worked as a tax preparer at a professional tax business in Montgomery. She prepared and electronically filed four false 2010 federal income tax returns using the means of identification of actual individuals without their knowledge or permission. Terry-Sankey then caused the false refunds to be deposited onto debit cards or issued as refund anticipation loans. She used the false refunds for her personal benefit. Florida Man Sentenced for Tax Fraud and Identity Theft On October 18, 2013, in Tallahassee, Fla., Jamal Ismail Raddar was sentenced to 60 months in prison, three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $1,223,140 in restitution. Raddar pleaded guilty on July 25, 2013 to conspiracy, conversion of government property and aggravated identity theft. According to court documents, between January 1, 2011 and March 8, 2013, Raddar helped negotiate more than one million dollars in stolen and fraudulently obtained United States Treasury checks. Raddar was a link in a chain of intermediaries between the persons who obtained the checks and those who ultimately cashed them. Evidence showed that he spent and held over $290,000 in cash in a twelve-month period when he was not otherwise employed. The case involved at least $1,085,467 in proceeds from fraudulent federal income tax returns, $134,610 in stolen Social Security checks, and $3,063 in stolen VA pension checks. The conversions occurred when Raddar asserted ownership of particular checks by attempting to negotiate them. He used the identities of real people in these crimes. Two Sentenced for Identity Theft and Tax Conspiracy On October 10, 2013, in Columbia, S.C., Yeedser D. Palacios and Wandy A. Fabre, both of Miami, Fla., were sentenced for conspiracy to defraud the United States and aggravated identity theft. Palacios and Fabre were sentenced to 75 months and 54 months in prison, respectively. Both were also ordered to pay over $91,000 in restitution. Evidence presented at the change of plea hearing established that Fabre, Palacios, and Charles Law traveled to South Carolina for the purpose of filing fraudulent income tax returns and receiving bogus refunds. The three men rented a local hotel room and waited while accomplices in Florida sent them the names, dates of birth, and social security numbers that had been stolen. The trio used this information to file tax returns and directed that the refunds be sent to various addresses. The defendants routinely checked mail boxes for debit cards containing the refund amount. The investigation revealed that the trio filed over 60 fraudulent returns. The average amount of refund claimed was between $5000 and $7000. Charles Law pleaded guilty and awaits sentencing. Pennsylvania Man Sentenced for Tax Credit Refund Scheme On October 9, 2013, in Philadelphia, Pa., Jonathan Brownlee, was sentenced to 24 months in prison, three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $197,385 in restitution to the IRS. Brownlee pleaded guilty to conspiracy to file false claims against the United States and aiding and abetting in the filing of false claims. According to the superseding indictment, Brownlee and his co-conspirators obtained the personal identifying information of several individuals, including their social security numbers, sometimes under false pretenses, which they then used to prepare bogus tax returns. Along with preparing and filing the bogus returns, Brownlee and his co-conspirators opened accounts at several banks for the purpose of having the refund checks electronically deposited into the accounts. The tax returns fraudulently reported that the individuals, for whom Brownlee had prepared the returns, were entitled to receive a $7,500 refundable tax credit under the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008. The returns were false because the individuals had not purchased new homes and thus were not eligible to apply for the refundable tax credit. Most of the individuals, in whose name the returns had been prepared and filed, were not aware that Brownlee and his co-conspirators had used their social security numbers for the purpose of filing the false returns
Posted on: Sat, 06 Dec 2014 08:42:37 +0000