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Witt Sentenced for Tax Scheme
A Jonesville man has been sentenced to 30 months in federal prison for his role in a brazen tax scheme that submitted claims for over $400,000 in refunds to the IRS, the U.S. Attorney’s Office announced today.
Tommy Witt, 57, of Jonesville, Virginia, pled guilty to one count of making false, fictitious or fraudulent claims and one count of conspiring to defraud the United States Government in respect to claims. He was ordered to pay $67,356 in restitution.
Witt worked with his brother, David Witt, and several others to submit 431 fraudulent tax returns claiming approximately $400,000 in refunds. The scheme was designed to use the personally identifiable information of inmates, including birth dates and social security numbers, to complete Internal Revenue Service Form 1040s with false information.
The Form 1040s were then sent to co-conspirators, including William Ziehler, Diane Powers and Richard Powers, who forwarded them to the IRS for processing. The IRS issued tax refund checks in the names of the inmates, but sent the checks to the addresses associated with the conspirators. Many of these checks were cashed at banks throughout Southwest Virginia using fraudulent power-of-attorney forms.
“Just a few days ago, millions of Americans filed their taxes and fulfilled their civic obligation. They must be able to do this knowing the process is safe and reliable,” said U.S. Attorney John P. Fishwick Jr. “When individuals participate in brazen tax schemes like this one, we will hold them accountable.”
“An integral part of IRS Criminal Investigation’s mission involves detecting, investigating, and stopping fraudulent refund schemes that ultimately victimize our nation’s honest taxpayers,” said Thomas Jankowski, Special Agent in Charge of the IRS Criminal Investigation’s Washington D.C. Field Office.
The investigation was conducted by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation and the United States Postal Inspection Service. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Kevin Jayne prosecuted the case for the United States.
Key Facts
- State: Virginia
- Category: White Collar Crime|Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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