Montgomery Woman Indicted For Million Dollar Identity Theft Scheme

Montgomery, Alabama - A federal grand jury returned an indictment charging Scottie Alice Johnson of Montgomery with a conspiracy to commit theft of public funds and to defraud the IRS, announced George L. Beck, U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Alabama.

According to the indictment, between 2006 and 2012, Scottie Johnson conspired with others to defraud the IRS and commit theft of public funds. Co-conspirators filed false federal income tax returns with stolen identities and had refunds directly deposited into several bank accounts, including bank accounts in the name of Scottie Alice Johnson and another individual. The bank accounts associated with the conspiracy received at least $1.3 million in false tax refunds.

An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed, and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. If convicted, Johnson faces 5 years imprisonment for the conspiracy count and 10 years imprisonment for each theft of public funds count. Johnson is also subject to fines, mandatory restitution, and forfeiture.

The case was investigated by Special Agents of the IRS - Criminal Investigation. Trial attorneys Jason H. Poole and Michael Boteler of the Justice Department's Tax Division and Assistant United States Attorney Todd Brown are prosecuting the case.

Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found at justice.gov/tax.

PRESS CONTACT: Clark Morris
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