Aminta Smith, Tax Evasion, North Carolina 2019

A Charlotte-area tax return preparer has been handed down a 30-month prison sentence for filing false income tax returns, announced William T. Stetzer, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina.

U.S. District Judge Max O. Cogburn, Jr. sentenced Aminta Smith, 34, of Charlotte, to 30 months in prison, followed by one year of supervised release. Judge Cogburn also ordered Smith to pay $171,017 as restitution for the tax loss caused to the IRS.

According to the sentencing hearing, court documents and evidence presented at trial, Smith owned and operated a Charlotte-based tax preparation business, Touch by Angels Tax Services, also known as Touch by Angels Accounting Services and Smith Tax & Insurance Group, LLC.

Between 2011 to 2016, Smith prepared fraudulent income tax returns for clients that claimed false education credits, false W-2 wages, and false Schedule C businesses to inflate the refunds paid by the IRS. In addition to filing fraudulent income tax returns for her clients, Smith falsified her own income tax returns by underreporting the fees she earned in her tax preparation business for tax years 2011 to 2015, and in some years failing to disclose that she was in engaged in the operation of a tax preparation business.

In May 2019, a federal jury convicted Smith of aiding and assisting in the filing of false tax returns and filing false tax returns for herself. Following the sentencing hearing, Smith was released on bond and will be ordered to report to the federal Bureau of Prisons upon designation of a federal facility.

Acting U.S. Attorney Stetzer commended special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation for their investigation of the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Caryn Finley of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte prosecuted the case. The Tax Division of the U.S. Attorney’s Office also provided invaluable assistance in this case.

Smith, a tax return preparer, caused more than $1 million in tax loss to the IRS. She will be ordered to report to the federal Bureau of Prisons upon designation of a federal facility. The case serves as a reminder of the importance of upholding tax laws and holding individuals accountable for their actions.

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