FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT
AUSA VICKIE E. LEDUC or
MARCIA MURPHY at 410-209-4885
DECEMBER 11, 2007
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
GLENARDEN TAX PREPARER PLEADS GUILTY IN SCHEME RESULTING
IN OVER $300,000 OF TAX LOSS
Greenbelt, Maryland - Ambrose Spence, age 70, of Glenarden, Maryland, who worked as an accountant for the United States Agency for International Development for 35 years, pleaded guilty today to aiding and assisting in the preparation of false tax returns, announced United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein.
According to his plea agreement, during the 1999 to 2002 tax period Spence operated a tax return preparation business out of his home and prepared several hundred returns for clients of whom approximately 87 % received refunds. A number of the returns Spence prepared contained false Schedule A deductions including fraudulent charitable contributions, unreimbursed employee expenses and other miscellaneous expenses, resulting in a total tax loss to the United States of $303,109. In interviews, Spence’s clients stated that Spence did not review their completed tax returns with them and that they were unaware of the false or inflated Schedule A deductions.
Spence faces a maximum sentence of three years in prison followed by one year of supervised release. U.S. District Judge Peter J. Messitte has scheduled sentencing for March 3, 2008 at 9:30 a.m.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein praised the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation for its investigative work and thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Michele W. Sartori, who is prosecuting the case.