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Phenix City Men Sentenced for Tax Fraud
Montgomery, Alabama – In a brazen scheme to defraud the government, two men were sentenced to prison for their roles in filing over 1,200 false tax returns using stolen identities.
Ernest James Simmons Jr., 29, of Phenix City, Alabama, received a 24-month and 15-day prison sentence, while Calvin J. Perry, 28, of Atlanta, Georgia, was sentenced to 32 months in prison.
According to court documents and evidence presented at the sentencing hearing, Simmons and Perry conspired with Perry’s mother, Pamela Ann Smith, to run a large-scale stolen identity refund fraud scheme from Smith’s tax return preparation business, Jaycal Tax Service, in Phenix City.
Between 2010 and 2012, the trio filed more than 1,200 federal income tax returns using the stolen personal identification information of actual individuals, which included the victims’ names and social security numbers.
Simmons was directly connected to false returns claiming more than $700,000 in fraudulent refunds, while Perry was directly connected to false returns claiming over $1 million in fraudulent refunds.
In addition to their prison sentences, Perry and Simmons were ordered to serve three years of supervised release. Perry was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $308,152, while Simmons was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $167,194.
The scheme was uncovered by special agents of Internal Revenue Service–Criminal Investigation, who commended U.S. Attorney George L. Beck Jr. and Acting Assistant Attorney General Caroline D. Ciraolo for their work in bringing the perpetrators to justice.
Key Facts
- State: Alabama
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes|White Collar Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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