Accountant Enters Guilty Plea To Preparing False Tax Returns

RICHARD S. HARTUNIAN, United States Attorney, Northern District of New York announces that JAMES BUTCHER (58, of Little Falls, NY), an accountant engaged in the business of preparing tax returns, entered a guilty plea to the felony offense of aiding and assisting in the preparation of false tax returns, in violation of Title 26, United States Code, Section 7206(2). The defendant is facing a statutory maximum of 3 years imprisonment, a maximum fine of $250,000.00, and restitution to the IRS for tax years 2007-2010. BUTCHER is scheduled to be sentenced on August 1, 2014, before the Honorable David N. Hurd in Utica, NY.

During the plea hearing on April 2, 2014, BUTCHER admitted the following. That he was the owner and operator of a tax preparation business named Jim’s Income Tax Service, which he operated out of his residence located in Little Falls, New York. From 2007 through 2010, he prepared forty false Form 1040 returns for fourteen of his clients. All forty of the 1040 forms contained false or inflated “Schedule A” deductions. Specifically, they all contained false or inflated charitable deductions and some also included false or inflated unreimbursed employee expenses. In preparing these forty returns, the defendant created and falsified expenses and deductions relating to charitable contributions and job expenses. He further admitted that he inflated deductions without being directed to do so by his clients. The total tax loss resulting from the forty false and fraudulent returns for tax years 2007-2010 is $140,446.00.

This prosecution resulted from an investigation conducted by the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigations, Syracuse, New York. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Ransom P. Reynolds. Further questions may be directed to Executive Assistant U.S. Attorney John Duncan at (315-448-0672).