Cleveland - Four people from Ohio were named in a 31-count indictment for their alleged roles in a conspiracy in which they filed more than 800 tax returns annually between 2012 and 2015 resulting in approximately $15 million in refunds being issued, a portion of which neither they nor their clients were entitled.
Indicted are Keith Jeffries, 44, of Maple Heights; Brian Peacock, 33, of Sandusky; Linnette Coleman, 44, of Cleveland; and Nicole Pugh, 31, of Cleveland. All four are charged with conspiracy to defraud the United States. All four face additional counts of aiding and assisting in the preparation of false and fraudulent tax returns.
Jeffries operated a tax preparation business under the name Krew Time, LLC. According to the indictment, the defendants filed false, fictitious and fraudulent tax returns in the name of Krew Time clients. The clients received the majority of the refunds with the defendants receiving a portion of the refund as their tax preparation fee, according to the indictment.
They did this by filing false itemized deductions, business income expenses, tax credit information, medical expenses, false filing status and other information to obtain income tax refunds to which the taxpayers were not entitled.
This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigations. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Carmen Henderson and Alejandro Abreu.