Michigan Tax Return Preparer Indicted for Allegedly Preparing Fraudulent Tax Returns

A federal grand jury sitting in the Eastern District of Michigan returned an indictment today charging the owner of a tax return preparation business with 26 counts of preparing fraudulent tax returns, announced Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division. 

According to the indictment, Gary Hairston owned and operated Gary Y Hairston & Co PLLC, a tax return preparation business located in Inkster, Michigan.  From at least 2010 through 2014, Hairston allegedly filed fraudulent tax returns with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) on behalf of his clients.  The indictment alleges that Hairston reported fake businesses and falsely claimed the earned income tax credit on clients’ tax returns, seeking refunds to which those clients were not entitled.

If convicted, Hairston faces a statutory maximum sentence of three years in prison on each count, as well as a period of supervised release, restitution, and monetary penalties.

Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Goldberg thanked special agents of IRS Criminal Investigation, who conducted the investigation, and Trial Attorneys Carl F. Brooker, IV and Thomas F. Koelbl Sr. of the Tax Division, who are prosecuting the case.

An indictment is not a finding of guilt.  Individuals charged in indictments are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

Additional information about the Tax Division’s enforcement efforts can be found on the division’s website.