Barbershop Bandit: Brown Gets 135 Months for $20M Tax Scam

WASHINGTON D.C. – Kevin Brown, formerly of Capitol Heights, Maryland, is trading his barber chair for a prison bunk after being sentenced to 135 months behind bars for orchestrating a brazen $20 million tax fraud scheme. The Justice Department announced the sentence today, capping a case that exposed a sprawling network of identity theft and fraudulent tax returns.

Brown, the acknowledged ringleader of the operation, wasn’t just clipping hair at his neighborhood barbershop; he was allegedly clipping the identities of vulnerable citizens to file at least 12,000 bogus federal income tax returns. The scheme spanned from 2005 to 2012, and specifically targeted the elderly, the infirm, the disabled, incarcerated individuals, and even the deceased – a particularly callous element of the con. Approximately 20 co-conspirators have already pleaded guilty in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

“Kevin Brown led a sprawling identity theft scheme that cost the government millions in fraudulently claimed income tax refunds, and caused substantial harm to those whose identities were stolen,” stated Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Caroline D. Ciraolo, head of the Justice Department’s Tax Division. “Today’s significant prison sentence punishes Brown for his conduct and serves as a clear warning to those engaged in or considering similar conduct that the government will prosecute these crimes and will seek incarceration and restitution.”

U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips for the District of Columbia didn’t mince words, stating, “Although Kevin Brown owned a neighborhood barbershop, he was making most of his money through illegal means, as a key organizer and leader of a massive tax fraud scheme.” Phillips emphasized the devastating impact on honest taxpayers who foot the bill for such criminal activity. The operation involved a network of over 130 people, many of whom were already receiving public assistance, adding insult to injury.

Federal investigators from multiple agencies – the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and the Treasury Department’s Office of Inspector General – collaborated to dismantle the scheme. Acting Special Agent in Charge Thomas J. Holloman of IRS-CI Washington D.C. Field Office warned that “Criminal conspiracies involving fraudulent refund schemes are loathsome crimes that victimize our nation’s honest taxpayers.” The U.S. Postal Inspection Service, led by Inspector in Charge Terrence P. McKeown, highlighted their aggressive pursuit of identity theft and fraud cases involving the mail.

Assistant Inspector General for Investigations John L. Phillips of the Treasury Department added that the sentencing “is reflective of the commitment…to pursue criminal charges against individuals and groups that prey on the public by stealing identities.” While the sentence offers a measure of justice, the fallout from the stolen identities and the financial burden on taxpayers will linger. Expect further details on restitution orders as the case continues to unfold, and a continued crackdown on similar schemes by federal law enforcement.