HARRISBURG - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Kenyatta Canidate, age 36, of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, pled guilty on May 29, 2018, before Chief United States District Court Judge Christopher C. Conner to filing false federal income tax returns.
According to United States Attorney David J. Freed, Canidate was charged in a criminal information on May 4, 2018, with filing false federal income tax returns. Canidate filed six false tax returns on her own behalf and filed 41 false tax returns on behalf of acquaintances. The acquaintances paid Canidate $100 for each bogus return she filed on their behalf. The total tax loss to the IRS resulting from Canidate’s fraudulent conduct was approximately $138,000.
The case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph J. Terz is prosecuting the case.
A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
The maximum penalty under federal law for this offense is five years of imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a $250,000 fine. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the Judge is also required to consider and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances and seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant; and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public and provide for the defendant's educational, vocational and medical needs. For these reasons, the statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the potential sentence for a specific defendant.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
