North Carolina Tax Return Preparer Indicted for Conspiracy and Filing False Tax Returns

A Raleigh, North Carolina, resident was arrested yesterday after a federal grand jury sitting in Raleigh previously returned an indictment charging him with one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States and 14 counts of aiding and assisting in the preparation of a fraudulent tax return, announced Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Richard E. Zuckerman of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and United States Attorney Robert J. Higdon Jr. for the Eastern District of North Carolina. 

According to the allegations in the indictment, Garvey Imhotep conspired with others to file false tax returns for the 2011 through 2015 tax years for clients of Tax Kings LLC, Two Brothers Tax Service, and Taxes Done Right. Imhotep was an alleged owner and operator of those three tax return preparation businesses. Imhotep and his co-conspirators allegedly filed tax returns that claimed false education credits, among other illegitimate items, in order to fraudulently generate clients’ tax refunds.

If convicted, Imhotep faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison for the conspiracy charge and three years in prison for each count of aiding and assisting in the preparation of a fraudulent tax return. He also faces substantial monetary penalties, supervised release and restitution.

Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Zuckerman and U.S. Attorney Higdon commended special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, who investigated the case, and Assistant United States Attorney Ethan Ontjes and Trial Attorney Lauren Castaldi of the Tax Division, who are prosecuting this case. 

An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed.  The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

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