A LaPlace woman is facing serious charges after a federal grand jury indicted her for tax fraud, bank fraud, and forgery in connection with the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
Shawanda Nevers, also known as Shawanda Hawkins and Shawanda Bryant, is accused of operating a tax return preparation business that filed false tax returns for clients between 2011 and 2016. The indictment alleges that Nevers claimed fraudulent losses and deductions, including false Schedule C businesses and unreimbursed employee expenses.
Nevers is also charged with contempt of court for violating a federal injunction that prohibited her from preparing federal tax returns in 2014. She allegedly prepared eight tax returns in 2015 and 2016, despite the court’s order.
Additionally, Nevers is accused of forging the signature of a federal bankruptcy judge on a false document and submitting a fraudulent claim for losses supposedly caused by the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill in 2010.
If convicted, Nevers faces a statutory maximum sentence of three years in prison for each count of aiding and assisting in the preparation of false tax returns, 30 years in prison for the bank fraud charge, and five years in prison for the charge of forging the signature of a federal judge.
Nevers also faces substantial monetary penalties, supervised release, and restitution.
An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed. Defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Caroline D. Ciraolo and U.S. Attorney Kenneth Allen Polite Jr. commended special agents of Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation, who investigated the case, and Assistant U. S. Attorneys Hayden Brockett and Mimi Nguyen of the Eastern District of Louisiana, and Trial Attorney Grace Albinson of the Tax Division, who are prosecuting this case.
Related Federal Cases
- Olsen Saravia-Hernandez, Tax Fraud Conspiracy, Louisiana 2023 · Louisiana
- David Delaney, Bank Fraud Conspiracy, Louisiana 2015 · Louisiana
- Jason Christopher Devillier, Bank Fraud, Louisiana 2013 · Louisiana
- Nisika West, Tax Fraud, Louisiana 2012 · Louisiana
- Tracy Nichelson, Bank Check Forgery, Louisiana 2013 · Louisiana
Key Facts
- State: Louisiana
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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