Fraud against the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) can come with serious penalties. A couple of recent cases provide examples:
Case #1: Married couple faces serious prison time for tax fraud, money laundering
A married couple was recently convicted for filing fraudulent tax returns. The couple received over $1.9 million in fraudulent refunds. They then deposited these refunds and began moving the funds from account to account. The government used this to support allegations of money laundering, stating the couple was trying to remove the money from its original source by hiding it in layers of transactions.
A jury convicted the couple for tax crimes including filing a false tax return and money laundering. They await sentencing this spring. They face up to ten years imprisonment and $250,000 in fines.
Case #2: Fraudulent mortgage interest deductions
The second example involved a woman who claimed over $270,000 in mortgage interest deductions. The deductions were claimed on a property that was in foreclosure for mortgage payments she never made. These allegedly false claims resulted in a reduction of her tax burden by $126,000.
She received six months in community confinement, two and half years on probation and a mandatory restitution payment of $177,852.
Take away lesson: Allegations of tax fraud are serious
Whether an honest mistake or not, allegations of fraud against the IRS are serious. A failure to defend yourself against these claims can come with steep penalties, including potential imprisonment. Take the allegations seriously. Protect your legal rights by seeking counsel from an attorney experienced in allegations of tax fraud.
