Illegal Immigrant Defrauds IRS in $25 Million Tax Scheme, Sentenced to 6 Years in Prison

Miguel Martinez, a 39-year-old Mexican national living in Bakersfield, California, was sentenced on Thursday to six years in prison for leading a $25 million fraud against the IRS. He faces 10 years in prison.

He was one of two Bakersfield-area men charged with conspiracy to defraud the United States and submission of false claims to the IRS. He was also charged with identity theft.

IRS Criminal Investigation special agents investigated the crime ring, which targeted taxpayers.

Martinez, who pleaded guilty in June, was in charge of a scheme that lasted from November 2019 to June 2023 in which hundreds of fraudulent tax returns were filed, allowing Martinez to claim millions of dollars in refunds.

In order to carry out his crime, Martinez stole identities and created fake businesses, reported fake wages, and withheld business information from the IRS. Martinez also submitted hundreds of individual income tax returns to the IRS based on stolen identities, reporting that the individuals worked for his phony businesses, and reporting their fake wages. Martinez did not act alone.

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