Howard Levine, Tax Return Fraud, New York 2007

Howard Levine, the mastermind behind Milaur Associates, a Suffolk County, N.Y.-based tax return preparation service, has been permanently barred from preparing federal tax returns for others. A federal district judge in New York handed down the order, which also requires Levine to provide his customer lists to the government and mail copies of the court order to his customers.

According to the government complaint, Howard Levine operated a tax return preparation service under the name Milaur Associates in Suffolk County, N.Y. The complaint states that Levine prepared an estimated 7,160 returns for the tax years 2003 through 2007. The Internal Revenue Service can not determine the exact number of returns that Levine prepared during this time period because he did not properly report his employer identification number on the returns that he prepared.

Levine’s scheme involved reporting all Form 1099 income on a customer’s Schedule C, whether or not the customer had a business, and then reporting excessive and unsupported expense deductions, thus resulting in a substantial loss to which the customer was not otherwise entitled. In addition, Levine, reported flow-through losses on customers’ Schedule E that were completely fabricated.

Based on its examination results to date, the government estimates that it has incurred losses in excess of $2.8 million. The Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service are working vigorously to shut down return preparers who prepare false or fraudulent returns for their customers, and catch those customers who actually filed false or fraudulent returns, said John A. DiCicco, Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Tax Division.

In the past decade the Tax Division has obtained injunctions against more than 410 tax preparers and tax-fraud promoters. Information about these cases is available on the Justice Department Web site.

Levine’s actions are a stark reminder of the importance of verifying the accuracy of tax preparers and the returns they prepare. Consumers should be cautious when selecting a tax preparer and ensure that they are dealing with a reputable and trustworthy individual.

The permanent ban on Howard Levine is a significant victory for the government and a testament to the efforts of the Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service to combat tax return fraud. It serves as a warning to other tax preparers who engage in similar schemes and highlights the consequences of such actions.

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