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Press Release

Jury Finds Sacramento Man Guilty of Filing False Tax Returns

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, Eastern District of California

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A jury found Omar Kabiljagic, 46, of Sacramento, guilty today of two counts of filing false claims with the United States, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to evidence presented at trial, in 2008 and 2009, Kabiljagic submitted a series of tax returns to the Internal Revenue Service which contained false information and fraudulently claimed millions of dollars in refunds. In each of these returns, Kabiljagic falsely claimed to have received large amounts of interest income, ranging from to $149,859 to $1,229,000, and then falsely claimed that all of the interest had been withheld by the payers. The returns requested refunds of the allegedly withheld tax. In reality, Kabiljagic had not received the interest and nothing had been withheld. Kabiljagic received repeated warnings from the IRS that his claims were frivolous, but continued to file false claims.

Kabiljagic also helped his co-defendant, Suvada Mahmutovic, 67, prepare and submit similar false claims. One of her false claims resulted in a fraudulent refund of more than $263,000, which the defendants deposited and cashed. At least some of the proceeds appear to have been wired overseas. Mamhutovic pleaded guilty to one count of filing false claims on March 3, 2017.

“Today’s guilty verdict of Mr. Kabiljagic once again shows the severe nature of fraudulent schemes perpetrated by those that wish to make a quick dollar from the U.S. government,” said Michael T. Batdorf, Special Agent in Charge IRS Criminal Investigation. “With the upcoming filing deadline of April 18, 2017, I want to remind all taxpayers that filing fraudulent tax returns is a crime with serious consequences.”

This case is the product of an investigation by the IRS Criminal Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Matthew G. Morris and Amy Schuller Hitchcock are prosecuting the case.

U.S. District Judge Garland E. Burrell Jr. is scheduled to sentence Kabiljagic on June 23, 2017 and Mahmutovic on May 19, 2017. The defendants face a maximum statutory penalty of five years in prison on each count, a $250,000 fine and restitution to the IRS. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.

Updated April 5, 2017

Topic
Tax
Press Release Number: 2:14-cr-021 GEB