New York Man Sentenced to Prison for Refund Fraud Scheme

ERIE, Pa. – A resident of New York, New York has been sentenced in federal court to 33 months in jail and ordered to make restitution in the amount of $73,720 on his conviction of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, Acting United States Attorney Soo C. Song announced today.

United States District Judge David S. Cercone imposed the sentence on Funmilayo Aliyu, 55, of New York, New York.

According to information presented to the court, Aliyu allowed his bank accounts to be used as repositories for fraudulently obtained federal tax refunds. Aliyu would then withdraw the refunds in cash, keep a portion for himself and provide the remainder of the funds to his co-conspirators.

Assistant United States Attorney Christian A. Trabold prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.

Acting U.S. Attorney Song commended the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Aliyu.