Jessica Crawford, Tax Fraud, Georgia 2024

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ATHENS, Ga. – Tax Preparer Sentenced to Prison for $3 Million in Fraudulent Returns

A tax preparer who admitted to filing more than $3 million in fraudulent tax returns on behalf of her clients is facing up to 30 years in prison for her crime. Jessica Crawford, 33, of Athens, pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud and one count of aiding and assisting in the preparation and presentation of false income tax returns.

Crawford faces a maximum of 30 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release and a $1,000,000 fine. Sentencing is scheduled for March 19, 2025, in Athens. There is no parole in the federal system.

“Jessica Crawford was an unscrupulous return preparer who allowed greed to cloud her judgement and neglect her responsibilities to help clients prepare and file a true and correct tax return,” said Demetrius Hardeman, Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation, Atlanta Field Office. “Crawford is not representative of most tax preparers who provide honest services to their clients. Taxpayers are urged to choose their tax preparer carefully, especially before tax season begins in January to have time to shop around. It is important to know that the responsibility for the information contained on the tax return is that of the taxpayer,” Hardeman added.

FBI Atlanta’s Acting Special Agent in Charge Sean Burke said, “Jessica Crawford lied and took advantage of funds designed to help those who were truly in need during the pandemic. The FBI and our law enforcement partners will continue to identify and hold accountable anyone who defrauds taxpayers.”

According to court documents and statements made in court, FBI agents investigating a multi-state unemployment benefit scheme conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic discovered text messages between individuals involved in the scheme and Crawford, a tax preparer with Crawford Tax Services in Athens. Crawford filed for Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) benefits on behalf of those individuals, who had created fake businesses or submitted false information to fraudulently obtain benefits. In return, Crawford received a percentage of the ill-gotten gains.

The IRS completed a statistical review of 1,261 total tax returns filed by Crawford in tax years 2020 and 2021. Of those, the IRS determined that Crawford fraudulently filed tax returns on behalf of clients which resulted in losses to the IRS exceeding $3 million from falsely claimed Form 7202 credits for sick leave and family leave, tax credits and dependent care credits.

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