HOUSTON - Stanshelle Renique Gaul has been ordered to prison following her conviction for preparing false client tax returns, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson along with Special Agent in Charge D. Richard Goss, of IRS - Criminal Investigation (CI). Gaul pleaded guilty in September 2015.
Today, U.S. District Judge Lynn N. Hughes handed Gaul a 24-month prison sentence. She was further ordered to pay $284,569 in restitution and will also be required to serve one year of supervised release following completion of the prison term.
Court documents show that Gaul included false deductions and credits in at least 59 client tax returns for tax years 2007 through 2010, which generated fraudulent refunds totaling approximately $284,569. The most egregious fraudulent refund was obtained in a 2009 tax return that claimed a business loss of $21,340 loss and a charitable contribution deduction of $21,300 without the client’s knowledge or consent. The fraudulent tax return also claimed a $1,200 dependent child care credit for children who were unknown to the client. This one tax return alone caused an estimated loss to the U.S. Treasury of $9,803.
Gaul was permitted to remain on bond pending the issuance of an order to surrender to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be designated in the near future.
The investigation leading to these charges was conducted by IRS-CI. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jimmy Sledge Jr. is prosecuting the case.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
