June 16, 2017

An Allentown, Pennsylvania resident was sentenced to serve 42 months in prison for conspiring to file tax returns using stolen IDs, announced the Justice Department’s Tax Division. According to the indictment and information presented to the court, Jessenia E. Cordero, 37, operated MJ & Associates and Express Tax Services, both located in Allentown. These businesses provided tax preparation, check cashing, and other services to customers. Cordero and her co-conspirators obtained lists of Puerto Rico residents’ names and social security numbers and used these IDs to file fraudulent tax returns seeking refunds with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). The conspirators directed the IRS to mail the refund checks to addresses they controlled or to deposit the refunds onto pre-paid debit cards. Cordero used her businesses to cash fraudulently obtained refund checks totaling approximately $4,316,103. DOJ

Tagged in: Tax Fraud,