Parker CPA Sentenced to 12.5 Years in Prison for Wire Fraud and Aiding and Assisting in the Preparation of False Tax Returns

DENVER – Don R. Iley, age 53, of Parker, Colorado, was sentenced yesterday by U.S. District Court Judge Christine M. Arguello to serve 151 months in federal prison for wire fraud and aiding and assisting in the preparation of false tax returns, the United States Attorney’s Office and IRS-Criminal Investigation announced. Judge Arguello also ordered Iley to pay $9.7 million in restitution, and serve 3 years of supervised release following his prison sentence. Iley was originally indicted by a federal grand jury on August 24, 2016, and pled guilty to two counts of that indictment on April 18, 2017.

According to the indictment and plea agreement, from January 2009 up until December 2015, Iley was the owner and operator of Iley and Associates (I&A), an accounting and tax preparation firm providing payroll and payroll tax services to more than 140 businesses in Colorado. The payroll tax services included the preparation of Forms 941, Employer’s Quarterly Federal Tax Returns, and an “ACH Deduction Report” listing the amount of payroll taxes to be withdrawn from the client’s bank account and paid forward to the Internal Revenue Service.

Iley caused the Form 941 tax return to be mailed to the client with a cover letter stating the enclosed tax return is a copy for their records and that Iley pays the taxes for the client. Iley then prepared and submitted payroll tax returns to the IRS on behalf of clients showing no payroll taxes due and owning for a given tax period. Iley knew when he submitted these payroll tax returns that the clients did in fact owe payroll taxes. Then Iley initiated or caused others to initiate an ACH electronic fund transfer from the client’s bank account to a bank account controlled by I&A.

Iley kept the money that was intended for payroll taxes and used it for his own purposes. Iley used some of the money to, among other things, make $900,000 in accelerated principal payments for Iley’s home, pay for the design, construction, landscaping and furnishing of Iley’s residence, and make investments in businesses and retirement accounts.

This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney J. Chris Larson.