Alabama Woman Indicted for Cashing Fraudulently Obtained Tax Refund Checks

Alabama Woman Indicted for Cashing Fraudulently Obtained Tax Refund Checks

The following press release was published by the US Department of Justice on April 30, 2013. It is reproduced in full below.

A federal grand jury returned an indictment charging Shatoubrioune Hare George, a.k.a. “Tobie,” with conspiring to cash fraudulently obtained federal tax refund checks, the Justice Department and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today. The six-count indictment charges George, of Montgomery, Ala., with conspiracy to commit theft of public funds and with theft of public funds.

According to the indictment, George and others obtained federal tax refund checks issued by the IRS as a result of the filing of fraudulent tax returns. She and others cashed 77 fraudulently obtained U.S. Treasury tax refund checks totaling approximately $137,000 through a bank teller who worked for a bank in Wetumpka, Ala.

An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed, and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. If convicted, George faces a potential maximum of five years in prison for the conspiracy count and 10 years in prison for each theft of public funds count. She is also subject to fines, mandatory restitution and forfeiture if convicted.

The case was investigated by special agents of IRS - Criminal Investigation. Trial attorneys Charles Edgar Jr. and Michael Boteler of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Todd Brown are prosecuting the case.

Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found at www.justice.gov/tax.

Related Materials: George Indictment

Source: US Department of Justice

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