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Tax Cheat Targeted Vulnerable Individuals in Bayview/Hunter’s Point
San Francisco, CA – A 40-year-old San Francisco man has been sentenced to 37 months in prison for tax fraud and ordered to pay $184,798 in restitution. Josiah Larkin, the owner of Colbert Ball Tax on Third Street in the Bayview/Hunter’s Point neighborhood, was found guilty of conspiring to file false tax returns and filing seven counts of false tax returns.
Evidence presented in court showed that Larkin set up an unauthorized franchise on December 15, 2012, just 10 days before Christmas. He advertised ‘Get Up to $600- Even if Unemployed, On SSA or SSI’ and promised tax refunds to his clients.
Larkin filed false tax returns claiming that taxpayers with $0 income had paid $4,000 in qualified education expenses to attend college. This resulted in a $1,000 tax refund based on the American Opportunity Tax Credit. Larkin took approximately half of the tax refund and gave the remaining half to his clients.
U.S. Attorney Brian J. Stretch said, ‘Today’s 37-month sentence should be a clear reminder that tax cheats who defraud the federal government wind up in jail.’
Assistant Special Agent in Charge Tyrone W. Blanchette added, ‘With his storefront and neon sign, Josiah Larkin appeared to operate a legitimate tax business. In reality, he targeted vulnerable individuals with the promise of cash just days before Christmas. He filed false federal refund claims and kept half.’
Larkin was also ordered to serve three years of supervised release and will begin serving his sentence on April 28, 2017. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Cynthia Stier and Laurie Kloster Gray prosecuted the case, which was the result of an investigation by the Internal Revenue Service.
Key Facts
- State: California
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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