Three People Sentenced in Tax Refund Fraud and Identity Theft Scheme

PANAMA CITY, FLORIDA – Jermaine Winters, 39, of Coleman, Florida, Senora Cotton, 24, of Chipley, Florida, and Rosetta Presley, 23, of Chipley, Florida, were sentenced today for conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, and aggravated identity theft in connection with the electronic filing of false federal income tax returns.  Winters was sentenced to 108 months in prison, Cotton to 24 months and 1 day in prison, and Presley to 2 days in prison and 5 years’ probation.  Additionally, the defendants were ordered to pay $195,547 in restitution to the IRS.  The sentences were announced by Christopher P. Canova, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.

During their guilty pleas, Winters, Cotton, and Presley admitted that, between July 2011 and July 2012, they conspired to file fraudulent tax returns using the stolen identities of assisted-living facility residents who lived at the Dogwood Inn in Bonifay, Florida, as well as clinical laboratory patients from the Sun Laboratory Services in the Tampa, Florida area, and others.  The conspirators attempted to steal more than $276,000 from the United States Treasury through the fraud scheme.  The refunds issued on the fraudulent returns were loaded onto prepaid debit cards and mailed to addresses in the Northern District of Florida.  Winters and Presley pled guilty on April 16, 2015, and Cotton pled guilty on August 3, 2015.

The case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, the United States Postal Inspection Service, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, the Chipley Police Department, and the Leon County Sheriff’s Office.  It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Kathryn D. Risinger and Gayle E. Littleton.

The United States Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General.  The office strives to protect and serve the citizens of the Northern District of Florida through the ethical, vigorous, and impartial enforcement of the laws of the United States, to defend the national security, to improve the safety and quality of life in our communities through the protection of civil rights, and to protect the public funds and financial assets of the United States.  To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website.  For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.

For more information, contact:
Amy Alexander, Public Information Officer
(850) 216-3854, amy.alexander@usdoj.gov