David B. Fein, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that a federal grand jury sitting in New Haven has returned an indictment charging THOMAS THORNDIKE, 60, of Milford, with 15 counts of aiding and assisting the preparation of a false federal income tax return and one count of obstruction of the administration of the Internal Revenue laws.
The indictment was returned on March 17 and was unsealed today following THORNDIKES’ arrest and arraignment before United States Magistrate Judge Holly B. Fitzsimmons in Bridgeport.
According to the indictment, THORNDIKE was the founder and owner of Cornerstone Financial Services of Woodbury, LLC (CFS), a tax preparation and financial services business. As the owner of CFS, THORNDIKE prepared federal tax returns for individuals and businesses in exchange for payment of a fee. THORNDIKE also offered individuals to whom he provided tax preparation services an opportunity to purchase audit insurance. Purchasers of audit insurance could elect to be represented by THORNDIKE in connection with any Internal Revenue Service audit of their individual federal income tax returns.
The indictment alleges that, in the course of preparing many of his clients’ tax returns, THORNDIKE improperly reduced the amount of tax due in a variety of ways, including falsely claiming deductions for charitable contributions and falsely claiming deductions for job expenses.
The indictment further alleges that, in December 2008, the IRS notified THORNDIKE that he was the subject of an IRS audit examining his preparation of tax returns for the tax years 2006 and 2007. In connection with the audit, THORNDIKE assisted in the preparation of, and then submitted to the IRS, falsified documents to support the false deductions claimed on tax returns that were subject to the audit.
After THORNDIKE entered a plea of not guilty to the charges, he was released on a $400,000 bond secured by property.
If convicted, THORNDIKE faces a maximum term of imprisonment of three years and a fine of up to $250,000, on each count.
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Thomas Thorndike Charged with Preparing False Returns, Obstructing IRS
Monday, March 21, 2011
Gwenn Wycoff and Frank Ozak Pleaded Guilty to Help Individuals Evade Taxes
WASHINGTON - A federal court has issued a preliminary injunction barring Gwenn Wycoff and Frank Ozak, both of Los Angeles, from promoting so-called “common-law trusts” that help individuals evade taxes, the Justice Department announced today. The injunction order, entered by U.S. District Judge Jacqueline H. Nguyen of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, will remain in effect while the government’s lawsuit seeking a permanent injunction is pending.
In granting the preliminary injunction, the court found that Wycoff and Ozak promote their scheme through personal appearances, a website and a self-published two-volume work they wrote with others called The Art of Passing the Buck, which contains false statements about the internal revenue laws. The court determined that the trusts promoted by Wycoff and Ozak (including one they created for themselves) are shams and have caused substantial harm to the government. The court found that the total amount of tax deficiencies assessed by the government with respect to four customers mentioned in the court order is more than $1.1 million.
The court also ordered Wycoff and Ozak to post a copy of the injunction order on their website and to provide the government with a list of all persons who have purchased their products, services, advice or publications in the past five years.
Sunday, March 20, 2011
Irvin Hannis Catlett Jr., Sentenced to 17 1/2 Years In Prison in Fraudulent Tax Shelter Conspiracy
GREENBELT, Md. - U.S. District Judge Roger W. Titus sentenced Irvin Hannis Catlett Jr., 64, of Crownsville, Md., today to 210 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release for tax offenses in connection with a scheme to prepare individual income tax returns for clients, which reported bogus tax losses from a purported car leasing company. Judge Titus also entered an order of restitution against Catlett for $3,810,244. A federal jury convicted Catlett on Nov. 4, 2010.
The sentence was announced by U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General for the Department of Justice’s Tax Division John A. DiCicco; Special Agent in Charge Rebecca Sparkman of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) - Criminal Investigation Washington, D.C., Field Office; and Special Agent in Charge Robert Geary of the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA).
"Irvin Catlett’s ‘tax shelter’ scheme was a fraud," said U.S. Attorney Rosenstein. "People who want to reduce their taxes should seek reliable and independent advice and avoid con artists selling magical schemes that are too good to be true."
"Sentences like this one send a loud and clear message that crooked tax return preparers will be investigated, prosecuted and punished for their actions," said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General DiCicco.
"People who create elaborate schemes that have no purpose other than to defraud the Government will be prosecuted," stated Special Agent in Charge Sparkman. "Today’s sentencing further shows that the IRS-Criminal Investigation is working to stop fraud schemes whose activities unfairly shift the burden to honest taxpayers."
"Congratulations all around for the excellent work on this case," said Inspector General George. "This is another example of outstanding collaboration between TIGTA and the IRS’s Criminal Investigation unit to stop fraudulent schemes in their tracks. Those who engage in them will be investigated and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Paid preparers are a critical component in our system of tax administration," he added. "When preparers violate the law, they harm their victims and severely damage the credibility and reputation of the tax preparation community."
According to testimony at the nine day trial, Catlett operated Tax Resolutions Inc. located in Laurel, Md. He falsely held out Motors Holding Company Inc., Motors Holding Company II through VI Inc. and Rentown Inc. to his clients as operating businesses involved in automobile leasing and sales. Catlett knew however that these entities were not engaged in automobile leasing and sales, nor in any other legitimate, profit-making business. From 1999 to 2009, Catlett worked with others to sell to clients purported "investments" in the tax shelter entities. These investments were payments to Catlett for the purchase of bogus tax losses, purportedly generated by the tax shelter entities’ automobile leasing operations. Catlett, Walter Cullum and James Unterreiner prepared fraudulent tax returns for their clients that included the fictitious business losses, thereby reducing the amount of taxable income and total tax reported by the clients, and resulting in the clients falsely claiming refunds from the IRS.
Trial testimony further showed that Catlett paid Mark Hunt, an IRS revenue officer, for providing Catlett with IRS taxpayer information on Tax Resolutions’ clients and for allowing Catlett to introduce Hunt to clients and potential clients as Catlett’s connection at the IRS, in order to assure them that the tax returns prepared by Tax Resolutions would not be the subject of adverse IRS actions.
As part of the scheme, Catlett and Cullum supplied clients with copies of stock certificates to assure the clients of the legitimacy of their investment in the tax shelter. Catlett and Cullum also provided clients with fraudulent IRS forms that reported the clients’ portions of fictitious business losses incurred by the tax shelter entities. Catlett instructed Cullum and Unterreiner to prepare client tax returns by first determining each client’s tax without the tax shelter loss, and then adding to the return a fictitious loss from a tax shelter entity large enough to reduce the client’s tax due to zero. Catlett also instructed Cullum and Unterreiner on how to prepare false tax returns so that they could maintain the scheme while Catlett was in prison from November 2002 to September 2004 on other charges.
As a result of the scheme, approximately 275 tax returns were filed with the IRS which reported $22,009,021 in bogus Schedule E losses, which resulted in a tax loss to the United States of $3,810,244.
Cullum Jr., 37, of Columbia, Md.; Hunt, 45, of Baltimore; and Unterreiner, 34, of Bowie, Md., pleaded guilty to their participation in the tax evasion scheme and were each sentenced to three years probation. Tressa Nivens, 45, of Frederick, Md., also pleaded guilty to her role in the scheme and was sentenced to two years probation.
Saturday, March 19, 2011
Tara Denise Bonelli Arrested in Foreclosure Assistance Scam
SAN JOSE, CA—Tara Denise Bonelli, 31, of Santa Cruz, Calif., was arrested today by agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation. United States Attorney Melinda Haag announced. Yesterday, a federal grand jury in San Jose indicted Bonelli, charging her with 18 counts of wire fraud, one count of mail fraud, and three counts of money laundering.
According to the indictment, Bonelli was the founder and owner of Vista Holding Company (Vista Holding) and Vista Funding, Inc. (Vista). Vista Holding owned and operated eight different entities: Vista, Independent Financial, Equity Advisors, Bonelli Properties, Lost Dollar Services, Equity Inquiries, Outlook Enterprises, and Sovereign Property Management. Vista was a California corporation that claimed to offer a variety of real estate and financial services, including foreclosure assistance, the purchase of distressed properties, and the subdividing and development of properties.
In addition, according to the indictment, Bonelli, with her spouse, and under Vista, owned properties in Aptos, Bonny Doon, and Scott’s Valley, California, that she used as collateral in her scheme to defraud. Bonelli solicited funds from various individuals representing that she would purchase distressed properties for resale and engage in the business of foreclosure assistance, when in fact she knew the money would not be invested, but rather go to finance an extravagant lifestyle.
Furthermore, according to the indictment, Bonelli offered the aforementioned properties as collateral for loans. In order to induce victims to send her money, Bonelli misrepresented the assessed value of the property used as collateral as well as her true interest in those properties. Bonelli caused prior deeds of trust on the collateral properties to remain unrecorded, thereby intentionally creating the appearance of less-encumbered collateral property to potential investors. She also utilized individuals as “door knockers” who solicited owners of properties in mortgage distress for so-called “mortgage assistance.” The door knockers, acting at Bonelli’s instruction, had the owners of distressed properties sign blank real estate sales contracts. Bonelli placated complaining investors by falsely telling them that escrows were about to close or that real estate deals were about to result in payments to Vista.
Bonelli made her initial appearance in federal court in San Jose today and was detained pending a detention hearing before Magistrate Judge Howard Lloyd on March 22, 2011 at 1:30 p.m.
The maximum statutory penalty for each count of wire fraud and mail fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1343 and 1341 is 20 years in prison and a fine of $250,000. The maximum statutory penalty for each count of money laundering, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section1957, is 10 years in prison and a fine of $250,000 or twice the value of the property involved. The indictment also contains two criminal forfeiture allegations. However, any sentence following conviction would be imposed by the court after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the federal statute governing the imposition of a sentence, 18 U.S.C. § 3553.
Friday, March 18, 2011
Nathan A. Peake Guilty to Tax Evasion, Conspiracy to Commit Bank and Wire Fraud
WASHINGTON – Nathan A. Peake, 40, a sports manager and resident of Silver Spring, Md., entered a plea of guilty today in U.S. District Court for the the District of Columbia to one count of tax evasion and one count of conspiracy to commit bank and wire fraud.
The plea was announced by U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Ronald C. Machen Jr.; Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General John A. DiCicco of the Department of Justice’s Tax Division; Rebecca A. Sparkman, Special Agent in Charge of the Washington, D.C., Field Office of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) – Criminal Investigation; D.C. Office of Tax and Revenue Deputy Chief Financial Officer Stephen M. Cordi; and Assistant Inspector General for Investigations Scott Berenberg of the U.S. Department of Commerce Office of Inspector General.
According to court documents, Peake has managed professional basketball players and boxers since 1999 under the name Peake Management Group Inc. (PMG). Peake did not file income tax returns for the years 2000 through 2007, despite earning significant amounts of income over that period of time.
Between 2000 and 2007, Peake diverted approximately $5,836,940 in management and agent fees from his business to personal bank accounts or commercial bank accounts that he controlled in names other than PMG. Peake committed numerous affirmative acts of evasion, including misappropriating proceeds from a $3.5 million commercial line of credit that one of his client athletes guaranteed and ultimately paid off; paying himself and his wife out of those commercial bank accounts that he controlled in names other than PMG; using cash to pay personal and business expenses; withdrawing cash in amounts less than $10,000 (an amount greater would have required banks to file currency transaction reports); and paying personal expenses with business receipts.
In total, Peake admitted to evading in excess of $1 million in income taxes.
In addition, Peake and others conspired to provide false information to several mortgage lenders over a nine-year period regarding Peake employment, income, rental receipts and obligations to the federal government. This included fabricated letters that falsely represented that Peake had filed federal income tax returns, reporting self employment wages, which had been reviewed by a certified public accountant.
Judge Ricardo M. Urbina set a sentencing date of Aug. 2, 2011. Peake faces a maximum prison sentence of 10 years. Under federal sentencing guidelines, the likely range is a prison term of 41 to 51 months.
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Timothy Devon Huntley, Jr., Pleads Guilty to Insurance Fraud
EUGENE, OR—Timothy Devon Huntley, Jr., 45, pled guilty today to committing wire fraud and aggravated identity theft as part of an insurance fraud scheme. He is scheduled to be sentenced on May 24, 2011 before U.S. District Judge Michael R. Hogan.
The case arose from an investigation by the National Insurance Crime Bureau into multiple suspicious insurance claims associated with Huntley. The investigation was referred to the Financial Crimes Unit of the Eugene Police Department. It was ultimately determined that Huntley filed at least 30 fraudulent claims resulting in $196,854.20 in losses to at least 11 different insurance companies.
In pleading guilty, Huntley admitted that, among other things, he obtained insurance policies for recently acquired used vehicles and used fictitious names, addresses, dates of birth, and Social Security account numbers (SSANs), as well as names, addresses, dates of birth, and SSANs belonging to actual persons. Shortly after insuring a vehicle, he would claim to have damaged a parked car with the vehicle. The parked car would generally be another used vehicle recently acquired by him in some variation of his name or that of his wife. Posing as the owner of the damaged parked car, Huntley would make a claim on the recently issued insurance policy. He would then be mailed a check to settle the claim.
Public records show that Huntley has over 20 prior convictions, including at least 10 prior felony convictions for a variety of offenses: forgery in the first degree, robbery in the third degree, theft in the first degree, possession of a prohibited firearm, hindering prosecution, and driving while suspended/revoked. He is currently in federal custody pending sentencing.
The maximum statutory penalty for wire fraud is 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, followed by a three-year term of supervised release. The statutory penalty for aggravated identity theft is a 24-month term of prison, consecutive to any other sentence, and a $250,000 fine, followed by a one-year term of supervised release.
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Jeffrey Chatfield Sentenced in San Diego for Hiding Assets in Secret Bahamian and Swiss Bank Accounts
WASHINGTON – Jeffrey Chatfield of San Diego was sentenced before U.S. District Judge Michael M. Anello to three years probation for hiding assets in secret offshore UBS bank accounts, the Justice Department and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today. Chatfield was also ordered to pay more than $96,000 to resolve his civil liability with the IRS for failing to file the required Reports of Foreign Bank and Financial Reports (FBARs) on Forms TD F 90-22.1.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Chatfield filed false tax returns for 2000 through 2008 in which he failed to report that he had an interest in or a signature authority over Bahamian and Swiss financial accounts at UBS and Credit Suisse. He also failed to report income earned on these Swiss bank accounts and never filed any FBARs disclosing his interest in any offshore financial accounts.
According to court documents and statements made in court, in or about 2000, with the assistance of a UBS banker, Chatfield opened a bank account at UBS Bahamas Ltd. in the name of nominee entity Alder West. Chatfield deposited into the account approximately $900,000 in untaxed securities and cash that he received in 2000 from his consulting work, which included advising private companies seeking to go public.
In August 2002, Chatfield closed the Alder West account and with the assistance of his UBS banker and others, formed Iberia West Ltd., a Bahamian nominee entity. Chatfield then opened a new Swiss account at UBS in the name of Iberia West and transferred into that account securities and cash previously held at UBS Bahamas Ltd. In August 2004, Chatfield closed his Iberia West account and transferred all remaining assets to an account at Credit Suisse, also held in the name of the nominee entity Iberia West. In 2008, Credit Suisse told Chatfield that it was closing all accounts held by U.S. taxpayers. Chatfield closed this account in 2008.
In February 2009, UBS entered into a deferred prosecution agreement under which the bank admitted to helping U.S. taxpayers hide accounts from the IRS. As part of their agreement, UBS provided the United States government with the identities of, and account information for, certain U.S. customers of UBS’s cross-border business, including Chatfield.
Monday, March 14, 2011
Eric Bernard Caldwell Indicted in Tax Fraud & Identity Theft Conspiracy
Source- http://www.justice.gov/tax/txdv11319.htm
WASHINGTON - Eric Bernard Caldwell was indicted by a federal grand jury in the Middle District of Alabama on charges of conspiracy and theft of government funds, the Department of Justice and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today. The indictment was returned on Feb. 16, 2011, and unsealed today.
Caldwell, a resident of Montgomery County, Ala., was charged with conspiring to defraud the United States by filing false claims and also charged with one count of theft of government funds. According to the indictment, Caldwell was part of a conspiracy that filed false tax returns using stolen identities. Caldwell provided identifying information to co-conspirator Ora Mae Adamson, who filed the returns, in exchange for a share of the illicit proceeds generated by the false tax returns.
Adamson pleaded guilty to conspiracy and identity theft charges on Dec. 2, 2010, and was sentenced to 46 months in prison on March 10, 2011. Another co-conspirator, Jeffery Leon Ceaser, has also pleaded guilty and was sentenced, on March 2, 2011, to 36 months in prison.
An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed, and defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. If convicted, Caldwell faces a maximum of 20 years in prison and a fine of $500,000.
Saturday, March 12, 2011
Former Alabama Mayor John Jackson, Pleads Guilty to Filing False Tax Return
WASHINGTON – John Jackson, the former mayor of White Hall, Ala., pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Susan Walker in U.S. District Court in Montgomery, Ala., to one count of filing a false tax return, the Justice Department and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today.
According to the court documents, Jackson admitted filing a false joint 2004 U.S. Individual Income Tax Return, Form 1040, that did not report all of the total income earned by Jackson and his spouse. Jackson also admitted in his plea to filing false joint Individual Income Tax Returns, Forms 1040, for 2005 and 2006, which failed to report all of the total income earned by him and his spouse.
No sentencing date has been scheduled. Jackson faces a maximum of three years in prison, three years of supervised release and a maximum fine of $250,000 or twice the loss resulting from his offense.
The case was investigated by special agents of the IRS - Criminal Investigation. Trial Attorney Michael Boteler of the U.S. Department of Justice, Tax Division, Southern Criminal Enforcement Section, and Todd Brown, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Alabama, handled the case.
Friday, March 11, 2011
Ora Mae Adamson Sentenced to 46 Months in Prison for Tax Fraud and Identity Theft
Source- http://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/2011/March/11-ag-303.html
WASHINGTON – Ora Mae Adamson, a resident of Montgomery County, Ala., was sentenced to 46 months in prison, the Justice Department and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today.
According to court documents, between March 2009 and September 2009, Adamson conspired with others to defraud the United States by filing 158 false federal income tax returns. As part of the scheme, Adamson and her co-conspirators fraudulently obtained the names and Social Security numbers of individuals. Adamson would then file false tax returns in these individuals’ names, without their authorization. The tax returns falsely claimed the first-time homebuyer’s credit and fuel tax credit. The refunds from the false returns were deposited into bank accounts controlled by Adamson and other co-conspirators.
In all, the conspiracy defrauded the United States of $621,738. One of Adamson’s co-conspirators, Jeffery Ceaser, was sentenced to 36 months in prison on March 2, 2011.
In addition to 46 months in prison, Adamson was also ordered to pay $621,738.41 in restitution to the United States.
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Michael Brier, the Owner of the Tax Return Preparation Firm Refunds Now Inc., and his Employees, Jeffrey Sroufe, Esther Santiago and Carmen Miranda, be Permanently Barred From Preparing Federal Income Tax Returns for Others
WASHINGTON - A federal court in Providence, R.I., has ordered that Michael Brier, the owner of the tax return preparation firm Refunds Now Inc., and his employees, Jeffrey Sroufe, Esther Santiago and Carmen Miranda, be permanently barred from preparing federal income tax returns for others, the Justice Department announced today. The permanent injunction order, to which the four individuals consented, applies to them personally and doing business under the names Refunds Now Inc., RNTS Inc., FTIRS Inc., POTIRS Inc. and IHIRS Inc.
In November 2010 the court entered a preliminary injunction against Brier, Sroufe and Santiago after finding that at least 300 tax returns prepared by Brier and Refunds Now understated customers’ tax liabilities and that Brier and his employees fabricated tax deductions and credits on the returns. The court also noted that a Refunds Now employee had offered to provide one of Brier’s customers with fake receipts in order to substantiate amounts reported on the customer’s tax return.
According to the court, Brier and his employees prepared approximately 24,000 federal income tax returns between 2003 and 2007. The court found that the Internal Revenue Service examined 350 of those returns and determined that 92 percent of them required adjustments, resulting in a government-estimated loss of more than $1.1 million in tax revenue based on the examined returns.
The court’s permanent injunction order requires Brier, Sroufe and Santiago to mail a copy of the order to all customers for whom they have prepared tax returns since Jan. 1, 2004. The order additionally requires Brier to remove or cover all exterior signs at 381 Wickenden Street in Providence indicating that tax preparation service is offered there and to post a copy of the court’s order at the front and back entrances of that address.
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Edward Gurary Pleads Guilty to Failing to Report His Foreign Bank Account at UBS in Switzerland
WASHINGTON - Edward Gurary, formerly of Orange Village, Ohio, pleaded guilty today in federal court in the Northern District of Ohio to filing false personal income tax returns for the years 2004 through 2008, the Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced. Gurary’s guilty plea was accepted by U.S. District Judge Dan Polster in Cleveland.
According to court documents, Gurary, 45, has resided in Switzerland since 2010, but lived in Orange Village during the prosecution years. Gurary admitted that from approximately 2002 through 2008, he owned and controlled a financial account at UBS AG which was in the name of a Bahamian entity called Demko Ltd. and which contained balances ranging from $490,000 to $947,000. Gurary controlled transactions in the Demko account by sending faxes using a code name “Vanda” to UBS from an OfficeMax store in the Cleveland area rather than his home or business. UBS would in turn send his requests for authorizations to officers of Demko in the Bahamas in order to make it appear that Demko owned and controlled the account. During the prosecution years, interest was paid by UBS into the Demko account, in amounts ranging from $3,400 to more than $21,000, all of which Gurary admitted he failed to report on his tax returns.
According to court documents, Gurary also admitted that for three of the years (2004, 2006 and 2007) he not only failed to report the interest income from his UBS account, but he also falsely stated on his Schedule B attached to his income tax return that he did not have signature or other authority over a foreign financial account. Gurary further admitted that in addition to the account at UBS in Switzerland he also had a foreign financial account with significant assets at Credit Suisse AG. Further, because Gurary did not file any Report of Foreign Bank or Financial Account (FBAR) form or otherwise disclose to the IRS his Demko account at UBS or his Credit Suisse account, he is subject to significant penalties. An FBAR form is a form separate from an income tax return that the law requires taxpayers to file with the IRS every June to disclose additional information about foreign financial accounts over which a taxpayer has signature or other control over, and which had an aggregate value exceeding $10,000 at any time during the year. Gurary agreed to pay a penalty amount of 50 percent of the highest aggregate amount in the two accounts between the years 2002 and 2009, which according to his plea agreement was at least $473,000. At the plea hearing, Gurary tendered a check in the amount of $300,000 made payable to the government and he has agreed to surrender the $200,000 cash bond he already paid on the date of his sentencing. Gurary faces a maximum of three years in prison and a fine of $250,000. Judge Polster scheduled sentencing for June 1, 2011.
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Lennie Fulwood Indicted for Tax Evasion
TALLAHASSEE, FL—Lennie Fulwood, 42, of Tallahassee, Florida, has been indicted on four counts of tax evasion and twenty counts of structuring currency transactions, announced Pamela C. Marsh, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.
Fulwood was arraigned yesterday in federal district court on an indictment alleging that he willfully evaded income taxes for the 2005, 2006, 2007, and 2008 tax years, by failing to report more than $1 million in taxable income. According to the indictment, Fulwood failed to file income tax returns and attempted to conceal his income by placing his assets in the names of nominees. The indictment also alleges that, in order to evade federal reporting requirements, Fulwood deposited more than $277,000 in cash at five separate banks, structuring the deposits into multiple transactions so that no single deposit exceeded $10,000.
Fulwood faces a maximum of five years’ imprisonment for each count of federal tax evasion, and up to 10 years’ imprisonment for structuring. His trial is scheduled for May 2, 2011.
Monday, March 7, 2011
Thomas R. Jennings and David J. Feuerborn each convicted of conspiracy and tax fraud offenses
LOS ANGELES – Two men who owned companies they claimed had technology to remove oil waste from contaminated soils were found guilty this morning of federal tax fraud charges for diverting company funds to themselves and concealing the income from the Internal Revenue Service.
Thomas R. Jennings, 54, of Anaheim Hills, and David J. Feuerborn, 50, of Camarillo, were each convicted of conspiracy and tax fraud offenses.
Jennings and Feuerborn were the owners of companies called ESS Environmental, Inc., of Placentia, and Environmental Soil Sciences, Inc., of Camarillo. The evidence presented during a two-week trial in United States District Court showed that Jennings and Feuerborn used a bank account under a name very similar to an ESS vendor to funnel to themselves several million dollars that they used for their own personal benefit, including the purchase of numerous cars, motorcycles, and recreational vehicles, as well as interior design work at their residences and condominiums in Palm Desert.
To execute the scheme, Jennings and Feuerborn wrote checks made out to the vendor, purportedly for engineering equipment and services. But instead of giving the checks to the real vendor, Jennings and Feuerborn deposited the checks into a bank account they held also in the name of the vendor and then spent the money on themselves by withdrawing cash, buying cashier’s checks, transferring money to their personal bank accounts and writing checks drawn on the account.
In addition to funneling money to themselves through this bogus account, Jennings and Feuerborn also paid themselves large “management fees” – typically $15,000 each per month – for running ESS. Jennings and Feuerborn instructed ESS’s accountant to falsely characterize these payments as “loans,” a designation that was designed to make the payments appear to be non-taxable.
Jennings and Feuerborn received substantial income that they failed to report to the IRS. Jennings received at least $1 million, and Feuerborn received at least $2 million, none of which was reported to the IRS.
The federal jury convicted Jennings and Feuerborn of conspiracy to defraud the United States. Jennings was found guilty of four counts of subscribing to false tax returns, and Feuerborn was found guilty of four counts of tax evasion. The jury acquitted each man of one count.
Saturday, March 5, 2011
Former UBS Client Arthur Joel Eisenberg Sentenced for Hiding Millions in OFFSHORE Bank Accounts
Source- http://www.justice.gov/tax/txdv11279.htm
SEATTLE – Arthur Joel Eisenberg of Seattle was sentenced today to three years probation by U.S. District Court Judge John Coughenour, the Justice Department and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today. Eisenberg pleaded guilty in December 2010 to willfully filing a false individual income tax return.
According to court documents filed in this case and statements made in court, Eisenberg admitted to filing a false tax return for 2004 in which he failed to report that he had an interest in or signature authority over financial accounts at UBS AG, one of Switzerland’s largest banks. He also admitted failing to report the income earned on his UBS financial accounts on his tax return. At the end of 2004, the total balance of Eisenberg’s various UBS financial accounts exceeded $3.1 million.
As part of his guilty plea, Eisenberg admitted that he opened a bank account at UBS in the Cayman Islands as early as 1983. The assets held in the account were later transferred to UBS AG in Zurich. In May of 2004, Eisenberg authorized and caused the formation of a Hong Kong corporation named East West Universal Limited and promptly transferred his assets from his existing UBS account to a new UBS account in the name of the corporation. However, Eisenberg continued to be the beneficial owner of the account and earned income from it through 2008. In 2008, Eisenberg instructed UBS to close the account and transfer the funds in the account to another large global Swiss bank headquartered in Zurich. The highest year-end balance of Eisenberg’s various accounts occurred in 2007 and exceeded $4.2 million.
Eisenberg paid a $2.1 million penalty for failing to file a Report of Foreign Bank or Financial Account (FBAR) form. An FBAR is a form separate from an income tax return that a taxpayer is required to file with the IRS every June to disclose additional information about foreign financial accounts over which the taxpayer has signature authority or other control over, and which had an aggregate value exceeding $10,000 at any time during the year.
Friday, March 4, 2011
Former Owner of Defunct Oil Company Richard A. Stevens Sentenced to Federal Prison for Filing False Tax Returns
Source- http://newhaven.fbi.gov/dojpressrel/pressrel11/nh030311.htm
David B. Fein, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that RICHARD A. STEVENS, 60, of Middlebury, was sentenced today by Senior United States District Judge Alfred V. Covello in Hartford to five months of imprisonment, followed by five months of home confinement and one year of supervised release, for filing false tax returns.
According to court documents and statements made in court, STEVENS owned F&S Oil Company, Inc. ("F&S Oil"), a now-defunct business that was based in Waterbury. STEVENS has admitted that, during the 2006 and 2007 tax years, he charged personal expenditures that were unrelated to F&S Oil business on the company's credit cards, including meals, travel, golf outings, and equipment. For the 2006 tax year, STEVENS charged $113,733 in personal expenses to F&S Oil and, in 2007, he charged $115,667 in personal expenses to the company.
STEVENS failed to report any of these expenditures on his personal federal tax returns for the 2006 and 2007 tax years, underpaying his federal taxes by a total of $79,186 for the two years.
STEVENS is required to pay back taxes, plus any applicable penalties and interest, to the Internal Revenue Service.
On August 11, 2010, STEVENS pleaded guilty to one count of willfully filing a false U.S. Tax Return.
Thursday, March 3, 2011
Jeffery Leon Ceaser Sentenced to 36 Months in Prison for Tax Fraud and Identity Theft
Source- http://www.justice.gov/tax/txdv11268.htm
WASHINGTON - – Jeffery Leon Ceaser, a resident of Montgomery County, Ala., was sentenced today to 36 months in prison, the Justice Department and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today. In addition to the prison sentence, Ceaser was also ordered to $621,738.41 in restitution to the United States and serve three years of supervised release.
According to court documents, between March 2009 and September 2009, Ceaser conspired with others to defraud the United States by filing 158 false federal income tax returns. Ceaser fraudulently obtained names and Social Security numbers of individuals and provided that information to Ora Mae Adamson, who filed the false tax returns without authorization from the individuals. The tax returns falsely claimed the first-time home buyer credits and fuel tax credits. The refunds from the false tax returns were deposited into bank accounts controlled by Ceaser and other co-conspirators. In all, the IRS disbursed $621,738 in false tax refunds. Adamson has also pleaded guilty to conspiracy and identity theft charges and is scheduled to be sentenced on March 10, 2011.
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
Teresa Little Moss Pleaded Guilty to Two Counts of Aiding and Assisting in the Preparation of False Tax Returns
Source- http://www.justice.gov/tax/txdv11259.htm
WASHINGTON - Teresa Little Moss, a tax return preparer from McCormick, S.C., was sentenced today to 30 months in prison by U.S. District Judge J. Michelle Childs in Greenville, S.C., the Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced.
On Oct. 14, 2010, Moss, formerly known as Teresa Waller Little, pleaded guilty to two counts of aiding and assisting in the preparation of false tax returns. According to court documents, Moss owned and operated The Little Tax Shop, a tax return preparation business with locations in McCormick and Abbeville, S.C.. The business served clients from throughout the state. For tax years 2004 through 2007, she willfully prepared, and aided and assisted in the preparation of, materially false tax returns for numerous clients.
The charges to which Moss pleaded guilty relate to the 2005 and 2006 tax returns of a particular client. The tax loss associated with these charged counts was $18,977. Including relevant conduct, the tax loss associated with this case was $557,429.
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Former Tennessee Inmate Walter Allen Johnson, Pleads Guilty to Filing False Claims
Source- http://www.justice.gov/tax/txdv11252.htm
WASHINGTON - Walter Allen Johnson, aka “Beau” Johnson, a former Tennessee prison inmate, has pleaded guilty to an indictment charging a conspiracy to defraud the United States by filing false claims as well as 11 counts of filing false claims against the United States, the Justice Department and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today.
According to charging documents, from February 2006 through January 2007, Johnson, while incarcerated in the Tennessee Department of Correction, conspired to defraud the United States by submitting false tax returns claiming refunds on behalf of inmates. Johnson collected Social Security numbers from inmates and recruited other inmates to collect the numbers for him. Johnson and his co-conspirators then used those numbers to file false income tax forms with the IRS in the names of inmates, claiming refunds to which the inmates were not entitled.
According to the indictment, as a result of the scheme to file false tax returns, Johnson and his co-conspirators collected approximately 88 U.S. Treasury checks totaling $58,651.80.
A sentencing date has not yet been set. If convicted, Johnson faces a maximum potential sentence of 65 years in prison and maximum fines of $3 million.
