Owner Of Financial Services Company Pleads Guilty To Cashing More Than $17 Million In Fraudulent Federal Tax Refund Checks

The following press release was published by the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys on Jan. 9, 2015. It is reproduced in full below.

Orlando, Florida - United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Wilson Benjamin (55, Apopka) has pleaded guilty to theft of government property. He faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been scheduled.

According to the plea agreement, Benjamin used his company, Benjamin Financial Services, to cash approximately 2,000 fraudulently filed federal income tax return checks worth $17.8 million. More than 400 of the returns were filed in the names of deceased taxpayers.

This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation and the United States Secret Service. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Vincent S. Chiu.

Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys