Justice Department Asks Federal Court to Shut Down South Florida Tax Preparer

WASHINGTON – The United States has sued Kenia Marrero seeking to bar her and her business, Kenia Immigration Services, from preparing federal tax returns for others, the Justice Department announced today.

The civil injunction complaint, filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, alleges that Marrero of Miami prepares federal income tax returns for customers that fraudulently understate their tax liabilities by using fabricated deductions, business expenses and first-time homebuyer tax credits. The lawsuit alleges that Marrero offers immigration services through her business, including assistance in obtaining work permits and visas, and uses that customer base to obtain tax preparation customers.

According to the complaint, an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) investigation revealed that 98 percent of the income tax returns prepared by Marrero and audited by the IRS resulted in tax deficiencies. The lawsuit alleges that the tax harm caused by Marrero’s misconduct could be as much as $1.4 million.

Return preparer fraud is on the IRS list of the Dirty Dozen Tax Scams for 2011 . In the past decade the Justice Department has obtained hundreds of injunctions to stop the promotion of tax-fraud schemes and the preparation of fraudulent returns. More information about these cases is available on the Justice Department website .