A Beaumont woman has been sentenced to serve a single year (and three months) in federal prison and pay restitution of more than $195,000 for fraudulently preparing tax returns for clients and then siphoning off the claimed relief before the taxpayer ever had a chance to see the cash.
Michelle Denise Johnston, 42, pleaded guilty to filing a false return and aiding and assisting in the preparation of a fraudulent return and was sentenced to 15 months in federal prison by U.S. District Judge Michael J. Truncale on Oct. 16. Johnston was also ordered to pay $196,177.00 in restitution.
According to information presented in court, Johnston was working at Allen and Johnston Tax Service (AJTS) in Beaumont when she requested refund amounts on customers’ tax returns that were based on inflated income, expenses, deductions and credits. Then, when the IRS deposited tax refunds for Johnston’s customers with a third-party vendor, the tax preparer deducted what was essentially a second preparation fee from her customers’ refund, unbeknown to her clients – usually the amount of the difference between the filed, larger tax refund and a modest tax refund originally made known to the customer.