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Guilty Plea in Stolen Identity Tax Refund Scheme
Aracelys Pichardo, a 26-year-old woman from Jersey City, New Jersey, has pleaded guilty to her role in a complex stolen identity tax refund scheme.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Pichardo obtained fraudulent U.S. Treasury tax refund checks through her former boyfriend, Carlos Jose Luis, also known as Jose Quilestorres.
The checks were payable to individuals from Puerto Rico whose identities had been stolen and in whose names tax returns generating the refund checks had been filed by various scheme participants.
Pichardo provided at least 21 of these fraudulently obtained tax refund checks to Carlos Mateo, who then gave them to Jeovany Rios. Rios cashed the checks at credit union branches in Bridgeport, Milford, and Danbury with the assistance of Angel Castellano.
Pichardo is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Robert N. Chatigny on December 29, 2014. At that time, she faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years and a fine of up to $250,000.
Pichardo’s guilty plea is a significant development in the ongoing investigation into the stolen identity tax refund scheme. The Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division, with the assistance of other law enforcement agencies, has been working tirelessly to bring those responsible to justice.
In related news, Mateo, Rios, and Castellano, all of Bridgeport, have pleaded guilty to charges related to this scheme. Carlos Luis, the mastermind behind the scheme, pleaded guilty in both the Southern District of New York and the District of New Jersey, admitting that he was a leader of a scheme to steal more than $10 million in fraudulent federal tax refund checks.
Pichardo obtained 21 U.S. Treasury tax refund checks totaling $137,860.70. The scheme, which operated between November 2011 and February 2012, resulted in significant financial losses for taxpayers and damage to the integrity of the tax system.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Connecticut is prosecuting the case, with Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarala V. Nagala handling the matter. The public can contact Tom Carson, Public Affairs Officer, at (203) 821-3722 or thomas.carson@usdoj.gov for further information.
Key Facts
- State: Connecticut
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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