Serge St-Vil, Wire Fraud & Aggravated Identity Theft, Florida 2013

Three men have been caught up in a massive $14 million tax refund scheme in Florida, with two of them pleading guilty to their involvement in the crime.

Serge St-Vil, 61, of Miami, and Muller Pierre, 62, of North Miami Beach, have both pleaded guilty to their roles in the scheme, which saw over 5,000 fraudulent tax returns submitted to the IRS in the names of deceased persons.

According to the plea documents filed with the court, St-Vil was responsible for filing thousands of these returns using an Electronic Filing Identification Number obtained by Finshley Fanor, 34, of Lauderhill.

The scheme, which was uncovered in 2010, resulted in the submission of approximately $14 million in fraudulent refund claims to the IRS.

St-Vil pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1343, and one count of aggravated identity theft, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1028A.

He faces a maximum possible statutory term of imprisonment of up to 22 years at sentencing, which is scheduled for May 17, 2013 at 8:30 a.m. before U.S. District Judge Robert N. Scola.

Pierre, who pleaded guilty to wire fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1343, also faces a maximum possible statutory term of imprisonment of up to 20 years at sentencing, which is scheduled for May 21, 2013 at 8:30 a.m. before Judge Scola.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael N. Berger, and the investigative efforts of the Identity Theft Tax Refund Strike Force have been commended by Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and other law enforcement agencies.

The defendants' guilty pleas bring an end to the case, which was one of the largest tax refund schemes in recent history.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdfl/pr/three-defendants-plead-guilty-14-million-identity-theft-tax-refund-fraud-scheme