Virginia Beach Tax Preparer Pleads Guilty to Preparing Fraudulent Return
NORFOLK, Va. – Ferdinand Mendoza, age 43, of Virginia Beach, VA, pled guilty today in Norfolk federal court to one count of preparing a false tax return for another.
Neil H. MacBride, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and Rebecca Sparkman, Special Agent in Charge, Washington, D.C. Field Office, Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division, made the announcement after Mendoza entered a guilty plea before United States District Judge Jerome B. Friedman. Mendoza faces a maximum penalty of three years in prison and a $100,000 fine when he is sentenced on June 27, 2011.
According to court documents, Mendoza operated a part-time tax preparation business from his Virginia Beach residence, and charged fees ranging from $50.00 to $270.00 for preparing federal income tax returns. From 2002 through 2008, Mendoza prepared thousands of individual income tax returns for clients using his services. In preparing the federal individual income tax returns identified in the 22 count indictment, Mendoza overstated and falsified his clients’ itemized deductions for items such as medical expenses, unreimbursed employee expenses, investment expenses, and other miscellaneous expenses. By itemizing these false deductions, Mendoza reduced his clients’ federal tax obligations and enabled most of them to receive substantial tax refunds which they were not entitled to receive. As a result, the United States suffered tax losses totaling approximately $443,664.00.
This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division. Assistant United States Attorney Robert J. Krask is prosecuting the case on behalf of the United States.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/vae. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia at http://www.vaed.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.uspci.uscourts.gov.
