Related Federal Cases
Tax Preparer Shut Down in Federal Court
A federal court in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., has permanently barred Jayvon Copeland, a Broward County man, from preparing federal tax returns for others, according to the Grimy Times investigation.
Copeland, who last month pleaded guilty in a criminal case to conspiracy to defraud the United States, consented to the injunction order without admitting the allegations in the civil complaint filed against him last April.
According to the civil complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, Copeland used stolen identities to prepare and file fraudulent tax returns claiming tax refunds that Copeland kept for himself. A September 2012 report by the U.S. Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration said that Florida has the highest rate of stolen identity tax refund fraud in the United States.
The complaint also alleged that Copeland fraudulently boosted tax refunds for his return-preparation customers by making false claims for the first-time homebuyer credit, reporting phony business expenses, claiming false education expenses, and fabricating income to inflate customers’ earned-income tax credits.
The court’s injunction order also shuts down two tax-return preparation businesses, Taxologist Inc. and Taxes in Miami Gardens LLC.
The court previously barred two of Copeland’s co-defendants in the civil injunction suit, Kisha Andrews and Brandon Johnson, from preparing federal tax returns. The injunction suit is still pending against the other two co-defendants, Aundrea Luc and James Daniels.
Copeland is awaiting sentencing for his criminal conspiracy guilty plea. The past decade, the Justice Department’s Tax Division has obtained injunctions against hundreds of tax-fraud promoters and unscrupulous tax return preparers. Information about these cases is available on the Justice web site.
Related documents include the United States v. Jayvon Copeland, et al. case and the Stipulated Order of Permanent Injunction Against Jayvon Copeland; Taxologist, Inc. and Taxes in Miami Gardens LLC document.
Mandatory Facts: Defendant/respondent Jayvon Copeland, exact criminal charges conspiracy to defraud the United States, city and state Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., exact date last month (no specific date), sentence or outcome awaiting sentencing.
Key Facts
- State: Federal
- Category: White Collar Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
ðŸâ€Â’ Get the grimiest stories delivered weekly. Subscribe free →
MORE FEDERAL CRIME NEWS
White Collar CrimeWhite Collar CrimeWhite Collar CrimeWhite Collar Crime