A Rockford woman has pleaded guilty to preparing and filing false income tax returns for others, leaving a trail of financial devastation in her wake.
GRETCHEN ALVAREZ, 49, operated a tax preparation business called Sick Credit Repair Tax and Legal Services, where she represented herself as an income tax preparer.
However, Alvarez did not have an IRS-issued Preparer Tax Identification Number to prepare federal income tax returns, a crucial requirement for tax preparers.
According to a plea agreement, in 2019 and 2020, Alvarez misrepresented taxpayers’ eligibility for education tax credits and deducted fictitious business expenses from their taxable income, resulting in a total tax loss of $356,881.00.
The scheme allowed Alvarez to fraudulently reduce the taxpayers’ tax liabilities and improperly qualify them for refunds that were greater than those to which they were entitled.
Now, Alvarez faces a maximum sentence of three years’ imprisonment and a maximum fine of $100,000.
U.S. District Judge Iain D. Johnston has set sentencing for Sept. 17, 2025, at 1:30 p.m.
The case was announced by Andrew S. Boutros, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, and Ramsey E. Covington, Acting Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Office of IRS Criminal Investigation.
GRETCHEN ALVAREZ, 49, is set to face the music after pleading guilty to preparing and filing false income tax returns, a crime that has left taxpayers with significant financial losses.
Related Federal Cases
- Eugene Fanfan, Tax Evasion, Florida 2016 · California
- William M. Mahon, Falsifying Bank Records and Tax Evasion, Illinois 2017 · Washington
- Crystal S. Jackson, Tax Identity Theft, Illinois 2016 · Illinois
- Melissa Turasky, Bank Fraud and Making False Statements, Illinois 2024 · Illinois
- Joint Active Systems Inc, Medicaid False Claims, Illinois 2024 · North Carolina
Key Facts
- State: Illinois
- Category: White Collar Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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