The grand jury alleged in the indictment that from March 1999 to April 2002, Reiss prepared tax returns for several clients that showed unauthorized deductions such as unreimbursed employee business expenses, milage expenses, charitable contributions, medical expenses and tax preparation fees,  and business losses resulting from business expenses that were fabricated or inflated.  In total, the grand jury alleged that Reiss underreported income for several of his clients by more than $160,000, which resulted in tax losses of over $45,000.

If convicted, Reiss, age 60, faces a maximum potential penalty of three years in prison and/or a $100,000 fine on each of the 18 counts of the indictment.  Any sentence would be determined by a judge based on the federal sentencing guidelines.

The case is the result of an investigation by the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Susan Burke.

Criminal indictments are only charges and not evidence of guilt. A defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty.