Brian D. Krantz, a 47-year-old from Twinsburg, Ohio, has been handed a nearly five-year prison sentence for masterminding a staggering $8.8 million tax fraud conspiracy. U.S. Attorney Steven M. Dettelbach and IRS-CI Special Agent in Charge Kathy Enstrom announced the sentencing, which also includes a $1.2 million restitution order.
Krantz pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to make false claims for income tax refunds and five counts of making such false claims. U.S. District Judge Sara Lioi imposed the 57-month sentence. ‘Those individuals who engage in this type of financial fraud should know they will not go undetected and will be brought to justice,’ Dettelbach warned.
The scheme, which spanned from April 2009 to June 8, 2010, involved filing false tax returns claiming refunds totaling over $8.8 million. The U.S. Treasury issued 17 refund checks totaling about $3.6 million to Krantz and his co-conspirator, Bryan D. McCallum. Krantz owned two corporations that engaged in financial services and real estate investment.
McCallum, who worked as an accountant/bookkeeper for the companies, was sentenced to three years in prison and ordered to pay $1.2 million in restitution after pleading guilty to similar charges. The scheme also involved using fake IRS Forms 2439 to claim substantial withholding credits on returns that claimed to be from Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs), which were not actually REITs.
Of the refund proceeds, Krantz used over $1 million to finance a real estate venture under the guise of hard money lenders. Both Krantz and McCallum deceived their partners about the source of funding.
The investigation was carried out by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, with the case prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys John M. Siegel and Justin J. Roberts.
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Key Facts
- State: Ohio
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: Official Source ↗
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