Leader of Sophisticated Stolen Identity Tax Refund Scheme Sentenced
Abraham Yusuff, of Round Rock, Texas — the leader of a scheme to defraud the IRS of over $110 million — was sentenced today to more than 14 years in prison. Meghan Inyang, of San Antonio, and Christopher Eduardo, of Round Rock, two of Yusuff’s co-defendants, were also sentenced today to over three years and over two years in prison, respectively. In total, seven individuals have now been sentenced to prison for their involvement in the scheme.
“Yusaf and his codefendants secured $30 million in fraudulent refunds from the IRS — and sought even more,” said Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division. “They stole the identities of honest taxpayers, filed hundreds of returns in those taxpayers’ names seeking bogus refunds and assumed the identities of real-life CPAs and other professionals to trick the IRS into directing the refunds into accounts and debit cards they controlled. The significant sentences handed down by the court reflect not only the injury caused to the Treasury, but also the financial harm and stress the defendants imposed on the innocent taxpayers and accounting professionals swept up in their scheme.”
“Yusuff and co-defendants didn’t just steal money, they stole the lives of hundreds of victims by changing all their contact information with the IRS and posing as authorized representatives for the taxpayers,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge Lucy Tan of IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) Houston Field Office. “This insidious and complex scheme victimized both the real tax professionals and the people they represent, which is why IRS-CI special agents help take down criminal enterprises and put criminals behind bars.”
“Stealing someone’s identity is abhorrent and despicable behavior. This week’s sentencing serves as a stark reminder that fraud and the pursuit of quick gains comes with severe consequences,” said Special Agent in Charge Christopher J. Altemus Jr. of IRS-CI Dallas Field Office. “I’m proud of the women and men of IRS-CI for their commitment to protect our tax system and their resolve to ensure that those who engage in fraudulent activities face the full extent of the law.”
According to court documents and statements made in court, from 2018 to 2021, Yusuff led a stolen-identity-refund-fraud scheme with Eduardo and Inyang, as well as Christian Mathurin, of Nashville, Tennessee; Dillon Anozie, of San Antonio; Babajide Ogunbanjo, of Austin, Texas; and Aydin Mammadov, of Houston.
As part of the scheme, and to avoid fraud detection procedures the IRS established, Yusuff recruited and directed Eduardo, Mathurin, Anozie, Ogunbanjo and Mammadov to provide addresses to him for the purpose of receiving mail, including IRS correspondence such as identity verification letters. Yusuff and others then contacted the IRS posing as authorized agents of multiple taxpayers. They used stolen information relating to the taxpayers and their real tax preparers to falsely persuade the IRS they were legitimate representatives. The defendants then directed the IRS to change the addresses on file for the taxpayers and to send their tax information, including account transcripts and wage records, to the addresses and emails the defendants controlled. Communicating over Telegram, Yusuff instructed his defendants to send him photographs of the mail the IRS had sent and then instructed them to destroy the mail.
The defendants used this information to electronically file more than 370 tax returns claiming fraudulent refunds and directed the IRS to split the refunds among several prepaid debit cards registered in the names of the victim taxpayers. Prior to issuing tax refunds to some taxpayers, the IRS sent verification letters to the addresses the defendants controlled, and the defendants and others, pretending to be the taxpayers, instructed the IRS to release the refunds.
Yusuff, Inyang, Eduardo, Anozie, Ogunbanjo and Mammadov obtained the prepaid debit cards that were to be used to receive the fraudulently claimed refunds. Once the refunds were deposited onto the prepaid debit cards, they further concealed the funds by purchasing, among other things, money orders from local stores in amounts that were designed to avoid having to furnish identification or trigger reporting requirements. They also used prepaid debit cards and money orders to purchase designer clothing, home renovation materials and used cars at auction. The defendants kept or received money orders purchased with the fraudulent refunds as their share of the illegal proceeds.
At sentencing, the government offered victim impact statements from several individuals whose identities were stolen, including victim taxpayers and accountants. The victims spoke of the financial harm and stress that Yusuff and his co-defendants caused them.
In addition to the terms of imprisonment, U.S. District Court Judge Robert Pittman for the Western District of Texas sentenced Yusuff to three years of supervised release and ordered him to pay restitution and a forfeiture judgment in the amount of $30,370,365. Eduardo was sentenced to three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $2,823,377 in restitution to the IRS. Inyang was sentenced to three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $762,512 in restitution to the IRS.
Judge Pittman previously sentenced the other co-defendants to prison:
- Dillon Anozie (30 months)
- Aydin Mammadov (18 months)
- Babajide Ogunbanjo (16 months) and
- Christian Mathurin (12 months).
IRS-CI and the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration investigated the case.
Assistant Chief Michael Boteler and Trial Attorneys Mary Frances Richardson and Curtis Weidler of the Justice Department’s Tax Division prosecuted the case. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Texas assisted in this matter.
Department of Justice
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Source: Justice.gov
