BUFFALO, N.Y. – A 51-year-old man from Floral Park, NY, is facing up to three years in prison and a $250,000 fine after pleading guilty to tax fraud in a U.S. District Court.
David Menzies, 51, of Floral Park, NY, pleaded guilty to tax fraud before U.S. District Judge Lawrence J. Vilardo on an unspecified date in 2017. Menzies faces a maximum penalty of three years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
According to court documents, Menzies filed fraudulent tax returns for hundreds of clients between January 2010 and April 2015, claiming fake business income and expenses and false dependents to claim refunds to which his clients were not entitled.
Menzies solicited and sometimes purchased the personal identifying information of minors from their parents, and claimed them as dependents on other clients’ returns. He charged his clients $250 for the use of the phony dependents and often used the same children’s information in multiple years.
Menzies recruited people to assist him in filing these fraudulent returns and directed them to escort his clients to check cashers, in order to cash their refund checks and collect Menzies’ fee, including the money he charged for creating false dependents.
In addition, Menzies concealed his identity as the preparer by soliciting other people to apply to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) for preparer IDs and filing the fraudulent returns using the preparer identification numbers the IRS assigned to these individuals.
Menzies admitted that he caused a tax loss of more than $250,000. He also acknowledged that he failed timely to file his 2009 through 2015 personal tax returns.
The plea is the result of an investigation by the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigations Division, under the direction of Kathy A. Enstrom, Acting Special Agent-in-Charge, New York Field Office.
Sentencing is scheduled for July 26, 2017, at 11:00 a.m. before Judge Vilardo.
Mandatory Facts:
Defendant/Respondent: David Menzies
Criminal Charges: Tax Fraud
City and State: Buffalo, NY
Date: 2017 (sentencing)
Sentence/Outcome: Up to 3 years in prison and a $250,000 fine
Dollar Amounts: $250,000 (tax loss), $250 (fee for phony dependents)
Related Federal Cases
- Alton Plunkett, Tax Fraud, New York NY, 2023 · Florida
- Letitia James, Tax Fraud and Bribery, New York 2023 · Florida
- Christopher Ferguson, Securities Fraud, New York 2020 · Ohio
- James Pavlounis, Social Security Administration Fraud and Tax Evasion, California 2023 · Texas
- Todd Faustin, Workers’ Compensation Fraud, New York NY, 2023 · New York
Key Facts
- State: New York
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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