A former Internal Revenue Service (IRS) employee pleaded guilty in federal court this week to defrauding that agency by filing false tax returns for various taxpayers in the Memphis area, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Tennessee announced recently.
Federal officials identified the former IRS employee as 52-year-old Linda I. Williams.
“According to the information presented in court, Linda I. Williams, former IRS tax examiner, prepared fraudulent returns seeking refunds for taxpayers and who, in some cases, directed part of the refunds as compensation to herself without the taxpayers’ knowledge,” the statement reads; adding:
The false returns included fabricated deduction in order to claim higher refunds. Williams claimed over $500,000 in false deductions for these taxpayers. Williams is also accused of failing to report any of her return preparation income on her own returns and sought to have taxpayers lie to investigating Treasury and IRS-CI Agents concerning her receipt of return preparation income.
Williams was a Tax Examiner of the Internal Revenue Service at the time of the alleged fraudulent activity and was under an obligation to truthfully report income received on her own income tax return. Sentencing is scheduled for August 12, 2021, before U.S. District Judge Sheryl H. Lipman. On February 25, 2021, Williams was charged with filing ten (10) false tax returns. She faces up to three years in federal prison for this offense and a fine of $250,000.
Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation officials and staff at the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Dean DeCandia (pictured above) is prosecuting this case on behalf of the federal government.
As The Tennessee Star reported in February, U.S. President Joe Biden has requested resignation of U.S. Attorney Michael Dunavant, who oversaw the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Tennessee and who was appointed by former U.S. President Donald Trump. First Assistant United States Attorney Joe Murphy succeeded Dunavant.
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Chris Butler is an investigative journalist at The Tennessee Star. Follow Chris on Facebook. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “US Atty Dean DeCandia” by Dean DeCandia and “The Courtroom” is by U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee Memphis Division.
Government employees are a crime gang.