ROCKFORD MAN PERMANENTLY BARRED FROM PREPARING FEDERAL TAX RETURNS FOR OTHERS

Justice Department Alleged Tax Preparer Improperly Claimed Refunds for Customers Based on Bogus “Bosnian Refugee” Claims

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Justice Department announced today that a federal court has permanently barred Guadalupe Valdez, of Rockford, Illinois, from preparing federal income tax returns for others. The permanent injunction, to which Valdez consented, was entered by Judge Philip G. Reinhard of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.

According to the government’s court filings in the case, Valdez prepared approximately 159 amended federal income tax returns, claiming refunds for customers based on Bosnian refugee status. Federal tax law does not allow any exemption from income tax for refugees. The complaint also alleged that Valdez underreported customers’ taxes by claiming false head-of-household filing status and false dependent exemptions. The permanent injunction requires Valdez to notify his customers of the injunction and to give the Justice Department a list of his customers’ names, addresses, e-mail addresses, telephone numbers, and Social Security numbers.

A separate Justice Department suit remains pending against another tax preparer, Angelique Tinder, formerly of Rockford. Information on that case, in which the Justice Department has asked the court to enter a preliminary injunction, is available at http://www.usdoj.gov/tax/txdv05110.htm.

Today’s action is part of an aggressive and ongoing effort by the Justice Department to seek and obtain injunctions to halt the preparation and filing of fraudulent returns. More information about these cases is available on the Justice Department website at http://www.usdoj.gov/tax/taxpress2005.htm. More information about the Justice Department’s Tax Division can be found at http://www.usdoj.gov/tax/index.html.