Kashara Stewart, Stolen Identity, Tax Fraud, Oklahoma 2017

BREAKING: Mother and Daughter Duo Plead Guilty to Stolen Identity, Tax Fraud in Oklahoma City

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma – In a shocking turn of events, Kashara Stewart and her mother, Wonica Stewart Pope, have pleaded guilty to federal crimes related to stolen identity tax refund fraud in Oklahoma City.

According to court documents, Kashara Stewart, 32, filed false federal income tax returns in the names of individuals without their knowledge or permission between January 2012 and December 2012. The false tax returns directed the IRS to deposit the claimed tax refunds into Kashara Stewart’s bank account.

The Superseding Indictment also charged Kashara Stewart’s mother, Wonica Stewart Pope, 57, with one count of making a false statement to a federal law enforcement officer. Pope left a voicemail for an IRS Criminal Investigation Special Agent in which she falsely confessed to the crime, claiming to be her sister, Wenoca Stewart, to shift blame away from her daughter.

On November 1, 2016, based in part on Pope’s phone call to IRS Criminal Investigations, a federal grand jury charged Wenoca Stewart, along with Kashara Stewart, with conspiracy and tax fraud. However, after learning that Pope had framed Wenoca Stewart, the United States moved to dismiss the charges against Wenoca Stewart on February 28, 2017.

At the plea hearing today before Judge Joe Heaton, Kashara Stewart admitted to filing a false tax return in October 2012, claiming a tax refund based on a false W-2, for someone who did not give her permission to file a false tax return in their name. She admitted that the false tax return directed the IRS to deposit a tax refund in her account, which it did, and that she kept that refund.

Pope also entered a guilty plea, admitting to leaving a voicemail message for an IRS Special Agent who she knew was investigating false tax returns filed by Kashara Stewart. Pope admitted she had claimed to be her sister, Wenoca Stewart, and had told the agent she was responsible for the conduct he was investigating.

At sentencing, Kashara Stewart faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release, a fine of $250,000, and restitution to the IRS for all related fraudulent tax filings. Pope faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of $250,000.

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