Haroon Amin, False Tax Refund Conspiracy, California 2010

Federal Charges for Tax Fraud Uncovered in California

In a shocking case of tax evasion, Haroon Amin of Upland, California, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud the United States, the IRS announced today. Amin was charged with engaging in a scheme to file false returns with the IRS using the names and Social Security numbers of deceased individuals.

According to the indictment, in 2002 and 2003, Amin and Ather Ali of Diamond Bar, California, filed at least 250 fraudulent tax returns, falsely stating that the deceased individuals earned wages from which income tax was withheld. These false returns claimed more than $2 million in income tax refunds.

Although the IRS rejected the bulk of these refund claims, a number of refund checks were issued and delivered to addresses controlled by Amin, Ali, and their co-conspirators, including to various mailboxes opened by Ali using false forms of identification. Most of these refund checks were then delivered overseas to be deposited in bank accounts in Armenia and Pakistan.

Amin admitted that he was a knowing participant in this scheme. According to the indictment and statements made at the plea hearing, Amin and his co-conspirators obtained deceased individuals’ Social Security numbers and other identification information from the Internet. The returns filed as part of the scheme had fictitious Form W-2 wage and tax statements as attachments. Amin created fake W-2 Forms using employer identification numbers that he had obtained from an acquaintance who was a certified public accountant.

Amin faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000. Judge Robert H. Whaley scheduled Amin’s sentencing for June 22, 2010.

Agents from the IRS Criminal Investigation Division in Laguna Niguel, California, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles E. Pell, along with Tax Division trial attorney Joseph A. Rillotta, are prosecuting the case.

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