Lazerrick Lawrence, a 52-year-old resident of Georgia, was sentenced to 20 months in prison and three years of supervised release for his involvement in a conspiracy to obstruct the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). The sentencing took place on February 13, 2026. Lawrence pleaded guilty in August 2025, shortly before the trial of his co-defendants.
According to court documents and statements made during the proceedings, Lawrence conspired with others to prevent the IRS from recovering funds that were fraudulently obtained through a tax refund scheme. Between January 2015 and September 2018, his co-conspirators prepared and submitted false federal tax returns. These returns included fraudulent forms purportedly issued by mortgage lenders, resulting in large refunds that participants were not entitled to receive. In total, the U.S. Treasury issued refund checks exceeding $1 million as a result of these activities.
Lawrence's role included filing retaliatory liens against an IRS employee who was assigned to recover the illicit funds. He also created corporate entities intended to hide the real ownership of properties subject to federal tax liens and assisted co-conspirators in filing sham bankruptcy proceedings.
Four of Lawrence’s co-defendants were convicted at trial in August 2025 and received sentences in January 2026: Rosemarie Lastimado-Dradi received 108 months’ imprisonment; Marciaminajuanequita Dumlao received 33 months; Elvah Miranda received 48 months; and Daniel Miranda received 30 months. Another co-defendant, Danitta Ross Morton, is awaiting trial scheduled for September 2026.
The investigation was conducted by IRS Criminal Investigation, the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, and the FBI.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregg Paris Yates and Trial Attorney Sarah A. Kiewlicz from the Criminal Division Tax Section prosecuted the case.
