Roxann Gist, Tax Refund Fraud, Illinois 2015

Chicago Women Sentenced for Massive Tax Refund Scam

In a brazen scheme that spanned years, two Chicago women, Roxann Gist and Dominique King, pleaded guilty to conspiring to file fraudulent tax returns using stolen identities, leaving a trail of financial devastation in their wake.

According to court documents, between 2012 and 2015, Gist, 45, and King, 26, along with an unidentified co-conspirator, filed at least 858 fraudulent income tax returns, using stolen names and social security numbers. The returns sought approximately $2,780,724 in refunds.

As part of the scheme, Gist and King acquired the personal identification information of thousands of unsuspecting individuals, directing others to receive and collect fraudulent income tax refund checks, and to open up bank accounts to receive direct deposits of such refunds. They also recruited others to provide addresses where refund checks could be delivered.

Gist and King are scheduled to be sentenced on June 6 and June 14, respectively. Gist faces a statutory maximum sentence of five years in prison for conspiracy to steal public funds, 10 years in prison for theft of public money and a two-year mandatory minimum sentence for aggravated identity theft, which will run consecutive to any other sentence imposed by the court. King faces a statutory maximum sentence of five years in prison for conspiracy to steal public funds and a two-year mandatory minimum sentence for aggravated identity theft, which will run consecutive to any other sentence imposed by the court.

Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg commended special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, who conducted the investigation, and Trial Attorney Timothy M. Russo of the Tax Division, who prosecuted this case. Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Goldberg also thanked the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Illinois for their substantial assistance in the case.

The scheme’s staggering scope and brazen nature have left taxpayers reeling, with the duo’s actions resulting in a significant financial loss for the government. As Gist and King face the consequences of their actions, the Grimy Times will continue to shed light on the dark underbelly of financial crimes.

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