Dennis Lerner, Conflict of Interest and Audit Disclosure, New York 2013

A former IRS official has been sentenced to three years of probation for violating a criminal conflict of interest law and for illegally disclosing confidential audit information.

Dennis Lerner, a former employee of the Internal Revenue Service, was sentenced in Manhattan federal court to three years of probation, a $10,000 fine, and a $200 special assessment fee.

Lerner, 60, of Edgewater, New Jersey, pleaded guilty in March 2013 to one count of violating a criminal conflict of interest law and one count of illegally disclosing confidential audit information.

According to the charges, Lerner worked as an International Examiner in the New York office of the IRS from June 2010 to August 2011. During this time, he was responsible for conducting an audit of an international bank related to approximately $1 billion in allegedly unreported income.

Lerner applied for and accepted the position of Tax Director at the bank before his resignation from the IRS and failed to disclose this information to his colleagues and supervisors. He also sent multiple emails to an individual expressing his dissatisfaction with his job at the IRS and his hope of securing the bank position.

Lerner was found to have engaged in improper disclosure of IRS tax return information by revealing the identity of a bank he was auditing to an individual not employed by the IRS.

The case was handled by the Office’s Public Corruption Unit, with Assistant United States Attorney Randall W. Jackson in charge of the prosecution.

Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara praised the outstanding investigative work of the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, which included the assistance and cooperation of IRS management.

Lerner’s sentence includes three years of probation, a $10,000 fine, and a $200 special assessment fee.

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