Middlesex County, N.J., Man Sentenced To 18 Months In Prison For Scheme To File Fraudulent Tax Returns

NEWARK – A Middlesex County, N.J., man was sentenced today to 18 months in prison for his role in filing fraudulent income tax returns and illegally receiving approximately $500,000 in refunds, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.

Badatunde Olugbake, 55, of Perth Amboy, N.J., previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Jose L. Linares to a three-count information charging him mail fraud, filing false claims against the United States, and receiving stolen government funds. Judge Linares imposed the sentence today in Newark federal court. 

According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:

From February 2008 through December 2010, Olugbake was involved in a scheme to file false and fraudulent tax returns to obtain tax refund checks. Olugbake deposited more than $400,000 in tax refunds as part of that scheme into bank accounts he controlled.

Through the unauthorized use of names and Social Security numbers of unsuspecting victims, along with false addresses, statements concerning income and dependents, and claims for refunds, Olugbake manipulated tax returns so that the purported claimants qualified for the Earned Income Credit. Olugbake then mailed the fraudulent returns to the IRS. The IRS processed the false returns as if they were legitimate and issued refund checks that were mailed to the fraudulent addresses associated with the returns, where the checks were retrieved by Olugbake and deposited into bank accounts under his control.

In addition to the prison term, Judge Linares sentenced Olugbake to three years of supervised release and ordered him to pay $500,422 in restitution.

U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Jonathan D. Larsen, and inspectors of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, under the direction of Inspector in Charge Maria L. Kelokates, with the investigation leading to today’s sentencing. 

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew J. Bruck of the U.S. Attorney’s Criminal Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jacques S. Pierre of the U.S. Attorney’s Special Prosecutions Division in Newark.

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Defense counsel: Vincent J. Nuzzi Esq., Dover, N.J.