Justice Department Sues to Shut Down Central Florida-Based Return Preparer

The Justice Department filed a complaint today seeking to bar a central Florida-area return preparer from owning or operating a tax return preparation business and preparing tax returns for others.

The civil complaint against Kenia Rodriguez, also known as Kenia Legon, was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida. The complaint alleges that Rodriguez, through a fictitious entity called Rodriguez Tax Services, prepared federal income tax returns on which she claimed extensive fraudulent deductions and credits to purposely underreport the taxes her customers owed and claimed refunds they were not entitled to receive. Specifically, the complaint alleges that Rodriguez prepared returns with false or inflated itemized deductions claimed on Form 1040 Schedule A and false claims for residential clean energy credits. The United States contends that Rodriguez hid her tax preparation activity by failing to properly identify herself on the tax returns that she prepared.

According to the IRS, anyone who is paid to prepare or who assists in preparing federal tax returns is legally required to have a valid Preparer Tax Identification Number (PTIN), and paid preparers must sign and include their PTIN on the return. Not signing a return, commonly known as “ghost preparation,” is often a red flag that a preparer is attempting to avoid detection by the IRS. The complaint alleges that Rodriguez operated as a “ghost preparer.”

By repeatedly understating her customers’ tax liabilities, the complaint alleges that the United States has been harmed by Rodriguez’s conduct, resulting in the significant loss in tax revenue of over $6 million since 2021. In addition to seeking an injunction against Rodriguez, the government requests an order of disgorgement to prevent Rodriguez from profiting from violating the internal revenue laws.

Deputy Assistant Attorney General David A. Hubbert of the Justice Department’s Tax Division made the announcement.

Attorneys from the Tax Division are handling the case.

Taxpayers seeking a return preparer should remain vigilant against unscrupulous tax preparers. The IRS has information on its website for choosing a tax return preparer and has launched a free directory of federal tax preparers. The IRS warns taxpayers to avoid "ghost preparers" and lists other improper acts that tax preparers engage in to take advantage of their unsuspecting customers. The IRS also offers guidance on the credentials and qualifications that taxpayers should seek from their return preparer.

In the past decade, the Justice Department’s Tax Division has obtained injunctions against hundreds of unscrupulous tax preparers. Information about these cases is available on the Justice Department’s website. An alphabetical listing of persons enjoined from preparing returns and promoting tax schemes can be found on this page. If you believe that one of the enjoined persons or businesses may be violating an injunction, please contact the Tax Division with details.