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Press Release

Man Sentenced in Alabama for His Role in Identity Theft Scheme

For Immediate Release
Office of Public Affairs

A man was sentenced to serve 70 months in prison for his involvement in a stolen identity tax refund fraud (SIRF) scheme that used prisoner names and a corrupt U.S. Postal Service employee, Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Larry J. Wszalek for the Justice Department's Tax Division and U.S. Attorney George L. Beck Jr. for the Middle District of Alabama announced.

Gregory Slaton was also ordered to pay $82,971 in restitution and to three years of supervised release following his prison sentence.

According to the court documents and court proceedings, Gregory Slaton conspired with his wife, Jacqueline Slaton, his brother-in-law, Harvey James, and a U.S. Postal Service employee, Vernon Harrison, to file false tax returns using stolen identities.  James and Jacqueline Slaton obtained stolen identities, including identities of inmates, and used those identities to file the false tax returns.  Gregory Slaton recruited Harrison into the conspiracy, who then provided Gregory Slaton with mailing addresses on his postal route to which they could mail the fraudulently claimed prepaid debit cards.  James and Jacqueline Slaton then directed the tax refunds to be issued on debit cards and checks and to be sent to the specified addresses on Harrison’s mail route. 

Harrison was previously sentenced to serve 111 months in prison, James was sentenced to serve 110 months in prison and Jacqueline Slaton was sentenced to serve 70 months in prison. 

The case was investigated by special agents of the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the U.S. Postal Service’s Office of the Inspector General.  Trial Attorneys Jason Poole and Michael Boteler of the Tax Division are prosecuting the case with the assistance of Assistant U.S. Attorney Todd Brown for the Middle District of Alabama.

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

Updated October 28, 2014

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Press Release Number: 14-1192