ATLANTA - Sean Demetrius West and Curry Anthony Love, Jr. were sentenced for their roles in a scheme to claim fraudulent tax refunds using bogus Form 1099s. Darrel Asquith Palmes and Emory Leon Harris, Jr. were previously sentenced for their roles in the scheme.
“This case is a reminder that the government will identify and prosecute individuals who file fraudulent tax returns," said U.S. Attorney Byung J. “BJay" Pak. “When caught, you are facing a felony conviction, prison, and a judgment for the amount stolen from the Treasury."
“IRS Criminal Investigation works vigorously to stop the issuance of these fraudulent tax refunds based on bogus Forms 1099. The criminals are inventing new ways to circumvent the system and the sentencings handed down in this investigation show the stiff penalties for doing so," said Thomas J. Holloman, Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation."
According to U.S. Attorney Pak, the charges and other information presented in court: West and Love, along with Harris, the organizer of the scheme, recruited taxpayers to file tax returns using bogus Form 1099s claiming a total of $2,688,591 in fraudulent refunds. Harris and West introduced Palmes, a tax preparer, to the recruited taxpayers. Harris and West provided Palmes with fake 1099s and other documents and Palmes in turn prepared the fraudulent returns. These forms listed fictitious employers for the taxpayers and claimed hundreds of thousands in withholdings already paid to such employers. The fictitious withholdings resulted in claimed refunds ranging from $134,990 to $1,000,000 for each taxpayer involved. Love, who filed his own fraudulent tax return, was the only taxpayer whose return was processed for a refund. The IRS identified and rejected six other fraudulent returns.
●Sean Demetrius West, 44, of Conyers, Georgia was sentenced to 18 months of home confinement and ordered to pay $435,990 in restitution. West pleaded guilty to interference with the administration of IRS laws on July 27, 2016.
●Curry Anthony Love, Jr., 51, of Lithonia, Georgia was sentenced to one year and one day in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay $435,990 in restitution. Love pleaded guilty to making a false statement in a federal income tax return on Nov. 2, 2017.
●Darrell Asquith Palmes, 71, of Lake Worth, Florida, was sentenced to one year in prison, to be followed by one year of supervised release, and ordered to pay $435,990 in restitution on March 1, 2018. Palmes pleaded guilty to interference with the administration of IRS laws on July 24, 2017.
●Emory Leon Harris, Jr., 33, of Atlanta, Georgia, was sentenced to two years in prison, to be followed by one year of supervised release, and ordered to pay $435,990 in restitution on Oct. 24, 2016. Harris pleaded guilty to interference with the administration of IRS laws on July, 26, 2016.
This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation Division.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian Michael Pearce prosecuted the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
