Mississippi woman sentenced to 26 months in prison for mail fraud, identity theft

MONROE, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that a Mississippi woman was sentenced Monday to 26 months in prison for using stolen identities to file 100 false income tax returns in order to illegally receive refunds.

Andrea W. White, 46, of Jackson, Miss., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Robert G. James on one count of mail fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft. She was also sentenced to three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $195,296 in restitution. According to the August 13, 2014 guilty plea, from January 6, 2012 to September 25, 2012, White conducted a scheme to electronically file 100 fraudulent income tax returns using stolen identities. Most of the refunds were then mailed to four U.S. Post Office boxes in Tallulah, La. On April 27, 2012, the Internal Revenue Service mailed one such refund check to one of the U.S. Post Office boxes in the name of an unsuspecting innocent taxpayer for $5,454.  White received the benefit of that federal tax refund.

The IRS and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service conducted the investigation.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Cytheria D. Jernigan prosecuted the case.