NEWS RELEASE
UNITED STATES ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
WESTERN DISTRICT OF VIRGINIA
John L. Brownlee
United States Attorney
Patricia A. Grisetti
Media Contact
Thomas B. Mason Building
105 Franklin Rd., S.W.
Roanoke, Virginia 24011
(540) 857-2250
FAX (540) 857-2180
August 5, 2003
FORMER UVA-WISE ACCOUNTING PROFESSOR SENTENCED TO 27 MONTHS FOR TAX AND BANK FRAUD CONSPIRACY
United States Attorney John L. Brownlee announced today that DONALD R. HILL, 61, Abingdon, was sentenced in United States District Court in Abingdon, Virginia. HILL, formerly an accounting professor at the University of Virginia-Wise, was sentenced to serve 27 months in prison, to pay restitution totaling $62,491, and to serve three years of supervised release following his guilty plea to one count of conspiracy to aid and assist in the filing of false income tax returns and to commit bank fraud. According to an Indictment filed on July 24, 2002, and a fact stipulation filed with a plea agreement on April 9 of this year, HILL conspired with local restauranteur Kim A. Prater and others to prepare false W-2 forms for a number of individuals indicating that they were employees of Prater's restaurant business and that they received wages and had taxes withheld. The false W-2's were used to prepare false income tax returns claiming refunds for earned income tax credits and excess tax withholding. The false tax returns were filed electronically with the IRS and in a number of instances were used to obtain refund anticipation loans from Beneficial National Bank. The indictment alleged that HILL, Prater, and the other co-conspirators cashed the loan checks and shared the proceeds. 40 other counts charging the filing of false income tax returns, bank fraud, and perjury were dismissed under terms of the plea agreement.
The investigation of the case was conducted by the Bristol Office of the Internal Revenue Service's Criminal Investigation Division. Assistant United States Attorney Rick Mountcastle and Department of Justice Tax Division Attorney Gregory Tortella were the prosecutors. For further information, please contact AUSA Mountcastle at 276-628-4161.