Arthur Leyon Penn, Witness Tampering, Alabama 2016

In a shocking turn of events, Arthur Leyon Penn, 39, of Monroeville, Alabama, was sentenced to 10 months in prison for tampering with a witness in his tax fraud case. Penn, who led The Penn Agency LLC, a company based in Monroeville that provided insurance and fraudulent tax preparation services, was found guilty of attempting to bribe a former employee at The Penn Agency to prevent her from testifying against him at trial in his tax fraud case.

Penn’s crime was uncovered by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation, and the 35th Judicial Circuit Task Force in Monroeville, Alabama. The cases were prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Sinan Kalayoglu and Greg Bordenkircher.

Senior U.S. District Judge Callie V. S. Granade underscored the serious nature of the witness tampering conduct, stating that Penn’s actions were a serious offense that would not be taken lightly. Penn was sentenced to 10 months in prison, with 6 months of his prison term running concurrently with his 48-month sentence in his tax fraud case, and 4 months running consecutively with the sentence in his tax fraud case.

Penn’s tax fraud scheme, which was orchestrated between 2011 and 2015, involved the preparation and filing of fraudulent federal tax returns. He was found guilty of two counts of aggravated identity theft in connection with the unlawful use of individuals’ social security numbers and the preparation and submission of fraudulent tax returns.

As part of his plea, Penn admitted to attempting to bribe a former employee at The Penn Agency to prevent her from testifying against him at trial in his tax fraud case. His wife, Oleavia Mitchell Penn, who operated another fraudulent tax preparation business, Quick Tax, in Camden, Alabama, was also involved in the tax fraud scheme and is scheduled to be sentenced on March 15, 2017.

Penn was ordered to pay a $100 mandatory special assessment as part of his sentence. The investigation and prosecution of Penn’s case were a significant undertaking, involving the coordinated efforts of multiple law enforcement agencies and prosecutors.

The case against Penn serves as a reminder of the serious consequences of tampering with witnesses and engaging in tax fraud. It is a stark reminder that those who engage in such behavior will be held accountable for their actions.

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