Honolulu Man Pleads Guilty To Identity Theft And Admits To Fraudulent Tax Return Scheme

Richard Lee Derrick, Jr., 52, of Honolulu, pled guilty today in federal court to one count of aggravated identity theft. Derrick will face a mandatory term of imprisonment of two years, a fine of up to $250,000, and restitution when he is sentenced on January 10, 2017, by United States District Judge Derrick K. Watson.

Florence T. Nakakuni, United States Attorney for the District of Hawaii, stated that, according to documents filed with the court, Derrick engaged in a scheme by which he filed numerous fraudulent federal and state income tax returns using the personal information of others. During court proceedings, Derrick admitted to filing one such fraudulent federal tax return using his deceased wife’s social security number on February 20, 2014. As part of the plea agreement, Derrick pled guilty to the identity theft offense but also agreed that he was responsible for fraudulently obtaining $241,897.60 in refunds from the State of Hawaii. Derrick agreed to pay restitution in that amount to the State of Hawaii Department of Taxation.

The case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation, the Social Security Administration Office of Inspector General, and the United States Postal Inspection Service, with the assistance of the State of Hawaii Department of Taxation, Criminal Investigation Section. The prosecution is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Amalia Fenton.