Sellersburg Tax Preparer Sentenced to Federal Prison for Filing More Than 460 False Returns

NEW ALBANY- Anita Marie Rodriguez Perez, 51, of Sellersburg, Indiana, has been sentenced to 18 months in federal prison followed by two years of supervised release after pleading guilty to five counts of Aiding and Assisting in the Preparation and Presentation of False and Fraudulent Tax Returns. Perez was also ordered to pay $1,954,673.30 in restitution.

According to court documents, between 2021 and 2023, Rodriguez Perez owned and operated a tax preparation business in Clark County, Indiana, known as ChuliTodo. During that time, she prepared and submitted false and fraudulent tax returns on behalf of her clients to the Internal Revenue Service.

Among other schemes, Rodriguez Perez submitted tax returns containing fabricated Schedule C forms (Profit or Loss from Business), falsely claiming the taxpayers operated businesses that incurred significant net losses. In reality, none of the taxpayers had operated a business during the relevant tax periods.

Additionally, many of the fraudulent returns included inflated itemized deductions under Schedule A, particularly for medical and dental expenses.

These schemes caused the taxpayers to receive refunds far larger than what they were entitled to. Between tax years 2020 and 2022, Rodriguez Perez prepared and filed approximately 463 fraudulent returns, resulting in a tax loss of $1,575,250.

“Tax fraud undermines the integrity of our financial system and unfairly shifts the burden onto honest taxpayers,” said Tom Wheeler, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana. “When tax preparers exploit their expertise to deceive the government, they not only violate the law—they betray the trust of their clients. These cases are complex and time-consuming to investigate, and the efforts of IRS-CI send a clear message: accountability applies to everyone.”

The Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation investigated this case. The sentence was imposed by U.S. District Judge Sarah Evans Barker. 

U.S. Attorney Wheeler thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew B. Miller, who prosecuted this case.

###