January 8, 2003 - United States Attorney Patrick L. Meehan announced the unsealing of an indictment* filed December 17, 2002 charging LUIS MARTINEZ with eleven counts of wire fraud, in violation of 18 United States Code Section 1343. The indictment alleges that MARTINEZ prepared tax returns for clients and directed that the refunds be electronically deposited by the IRS into his bank account. Defendant MARTINEZ allegedly falsely represented to at least 15 taxpayer clients that they would receive a refund of less than the refund that MARTINEZ had claimed for them on their tax returns. The total amount of the refunds claimed by these 15 taxpayers, whose payments defendant MARTINEZ allegedly directed to his account, was $20,320.55. If convicted the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of five years incarceration, a three-year period of supervised release, a $2,750,000 fine and a $1,100 special assessment.

DEFENDANT	ADDRESS	AGE [Date of Birth]
LUIS MARTINEZ	1139 Glenview Street Philadelphia, PA	January 25, 1955

The case was investigated by the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration and has been assigned to Assistant United States Attorney Kathleen M. Rice.