Owner Of Rocky Mount Based Tax Return Preparation Business Sentenced To 100 Months

RALEIGH – United States Attorney Thomas G. Walker announced that today in federal court, Senior United States District Judge W. Earl Britt sentenced LARRY D. HILL, JR. , age 41, of Rocky Mount, North Carolina, to 100 months imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release.

"During tax filing season, return preparers and taxpayers should be aware of the serious consequences facing those who aid or assist in the filing of fraudulent tax returns," said Special Agent in Charge Jeannine A. Hammett, IRS-Criminal Investigation. "Those who fly in the face of the tax laws face investigation, prosecution, and if convicted, significant prison sentences and substantial fines.  Today's sentence sends a strong message to unscrupulous return preparers who think they can get away with tampering with our nation's tax system."

HILL was named in a Criminal Information filed on April 29, 2013, charging him with one count of conspiring to submit false claims for federal income tax refunds to the IRS, and one count of filing a false 2010 federal income tax return.  On August 5, 2013, HILL pled guilty to the charges. 

According to the investigation, HILL owned and operated Hill’s Tax Service (HTS), a tax return preparation business which, at various times, maintained offices in Rocky Mount, Farmville, Scotland Neck, Hollister, and Wilson.  Between 2010 and 2012, HILL and his co-conspirators filed well over 2,000 federal income tax return for HTS customer that claimed, collectively, over $14 million in tax refunds.  A significant number of the HTS returns reported materially false information – including false dependents, income, and withholdings – in order to maximize the earned income tax credit and otherwise cause the issuance of inflated refunds.  HILL and his co-conspirators pocketed a portion of every fraudulent tax refund that was issued.  According to the investigation, HILL profited the most from the long-running scheme, collecting, on average, $1,000 or more from each unlawful refund.

The investigation of this case was conducted by the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Adam F. Hulbig