New Orleans CPA Brendel Deemer, 48, has been nailed for willfully filing a false income tax return, dodging taxes by hiding income and inflating phantom business expenses. The federal court case, prosecuted by U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans, lands a hard blow on a financial professional who used her credentials to manipulate the system.
Deemer was charged in June 2017 with a single count of filing a false tax return and pleaded guilty that September. Court documents reveal she filed a fraudulent 2010 individual income tax return, omitting legitimate income and falsely reporting expenses for Building Blocks Academy—a daycare she operated from 1999 to 2005 but shuttered permanently after Hurricane Katrina. Despite no longer running it, Deemer continued to claim business expenses for the defunct entity on her 2009 and 2010 returns.
Her primary business, Deemer CPA & Consulting Services LLC, which she’s operated since at least 2009, became the vehicle for her deception. She manipulated Schedule C filings to underreport earnings while padding deductions for a business that no longer existed. The scheme unraveled under scrutiny from the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigations (IRS-CI), whose forensic audit exposed the discrepancies.
U.S. District Judge Jay C. Zainey slammed Deemer with three years of probation, a $3,000 fine, and a $100 special assessment. On top of that, she’s on the hook for $88,651.22 in restitution to the IRS and must complete 100 hours of community service—a public reckoning for a crime rooted in deception and greed.
“This case sends a clear message,” said U.S. Attorney Evans. “No one is above the law, especially those entrusted with financial integrity.” He credited the IRS-CI for their relentless investigation, which peeled back layers of falsified records and false claims. Assistant U.S. Attorney Hayden Brockett handled the prosecution.
Deemer’s fall from licensed CPA to convicted felon underscores the federal government’s sharpened focus on financial professionals who abuse their positions. In the murky aftermath of Katrina, some tried to exploit chaos. Deemer’s scheme may have flown under the radar—until now.
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Key Facts
- State: Louisiana
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: Official Source ↗
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