Matthew D. Krueger, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, announced that on September 8, 2020, United States District Judge Lynn Adelman sentenced Alberto Fernandez Ramirez (51) and Ana Delia Dominguez (45), of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, to 24 months in prison for fraudulently obtaining over $1.7 million in tax refund checks. Both Ramirez and Dominguez pled guilty to three counts of theft of government money, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 641. Judge Adelman also ordered them to pay $1,733,677.22 in restitution to the Internal Revenue Service.
Ramirez and Dominguez, who are married, committed their theft by fraudulently obtaining Individual Tax Identification Numbers (“ITINs") from the IRS. They did so by obtaining personal identifying documents of citizens in Mexico, and then used those documents to obtain ITINs in those individuals’ names. They then used the ITINs to file false tax returns that often fraudulently claimed the Additional Child Tax Credit. These false returns caused the IRS to send out United States Treasury tax refund checks. From approximately 2010 through 2017, Ramirez and Dominguez received over $1.7 million worth of refund checks due to their scheme. At sentencing, the government recommended that the Court impose a term of incarceration consistent with the advisory Guidelines range, which called for 46-57 months of incarceration.
“The defendants pursued an outrageous and brazen scheme to steal taxpayer dollars, by obtaining ITINs in the names of foreign nationals and then using those ITINs to file bogus tax refund claims," said U.S. Attorney Krueger. “I commend the excellent investigative work by the IRS to build this case."
“We want everyone who files a tax return to take advantage of the deductions and credits to which they are entitled by law; however, no one is allowed to defraud the government and take what is not theirs", stated Special Agent in Charge Kathy A. Enstrom of the IRS Criminal Investigation, Chicago Field Office. “The IRS will continue to be relentless in our mission to stop these types of fraudulent tax refund schemes and will continue to bring criminals to justice."
This case was investigated by IRS Criminal Investigation. It is was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Keith Alexander.
The year 2020 marks the 150th anniversary of the Department of Justice. Learn more about the history of our agency at www.Justice.gov/Celebrating150Years. #
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
