R.I. Businessman Sentenced in Multi-million Dollar Tax Refund Scheme

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Anthony DelFarno, 53, of East Greenwich, R.I., was sentenced in U.S. District Court in Providence today to 65 months in federal prison for filing fifty-eight fraudulent personal and corporate tax returns between 2008 and 2011, some containing stolen personal identifying information of family members and others, seeking approximately $3.5 million dollars in tax refunds.

At sentencing, U.S. District Court Judge John J. McConnell, Jr., also ordered DelFarno to serve 3 years of supervised release upon completion of his prison sentence and to pay restitution to the government in the amount of $1.4 million.  DelFarno pleaded guilty on June 16, 2015, to eleven counts of mail fraud, twenty-eight counts of theft of government funds and three counts of aggravated identity theft.

Delfarno’s sentence is announced by United States Attorney Peter F. Neronha; William P. Offord, Special Agent in Charge of IRS Criminal Investigation; and Colonel Steven G. O’Donnell, Superintendent of the Rhode Island State Police.

At the time of his guilty plea, DelFarno admitted to the court that he filed twenty-eight false individual income tax returns in his own name, and in the names of several family members, including five of his children, and a girlfriend, without their knowledge, seeking refunds totaling $1.1 million dollars. Approximately $400,000 was paid to the defendant.

Additionally, DelFarno admitted to the court that he filed thirty fraudulent corporate income tax returns, for which he claimed refunds of $2.4 million dollars and was paid approximately $1 million dollars. DelFarno admitted to the court that many of the corporations he formed were formed in order to execute the tax fraud scheme.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Richard W. Rose.

The matter was investigated by the United States Attorney’s Office, IRS Criminal Investigation and Rhode Island State Police.

This law enforcement action is part of President Barack Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force. The President established the interagency Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force to wage an aggressive, coordinated and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes.  The task force includes representatives from a broad range of federal agencies, regulatory authorities, inspectors general, and state and local law enforcement who, working together, bring to bear a powerful array of criminal and civil enforcement resources. 

The task force is working to improve efforts across the federal executive branch, and with state and local partners, to investigate and prosecute significant financial crimes, ensure just and effective punishment for those who perpetrate financial crimes, combat discrimination in the lending and financial markets, and recover proceeds for victims of financial crimes.

Contact:

Jim Martin (401) 709-5357

email: USARI.Media@usdoj.gov

on Twitter @USAO_RI