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

May 16, 2003

UVA-Wise Accounting Professor Pleads Guilty to Tax and Bank Fraud Conspiracy

United States Attorney John L. Brownlee announced today that DONALD R. HILL, 60, Abingdon, pled guilty in United States District Court in Abingdon. HILL, an accounting professor at the University of Virginia-Wise, pled guilty 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.

Under the terms of the plea agreement, HILL will pay restitution totaling more than $12,000 to Household Bank Refund Lending (the successor of Beneficial Bank), and more than $50,000 to the United States. Under the plea agreement the United States will move to dismiss 19 substantive counts of aiding and assisting in filing false income tax returns, 19 substantive counts of bank fraud, and two counts of perjury when HILL is sentenced. HILL faces a statutory maximum penalty of five years in prison and fines of up to $250,000 when he is sentenced on August 5, 2003.

The investigation of the case was conducted by 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.

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