Tiffany Parish sentenced for filing false claims for tax refund - wave3.com-Louisville News, Weather & Sports

Tiffany Parish, 30, of Cincinnati, was sentenced to 21 months in prison, three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay $1,985,136 in restitution to the Internal Revenue Service relative to filing false claims for fraudulent income tax refunds with the IRS. 

Parish previously pleaded guilty to this charge on October 31, 2012.

According to court documents, beginning in 2008 Tiffany Parish worked as a return preparer for an unnamed company.  As an employee, Parish was trained on how to prepare false federal income tax returns so that her clients could receive the largest income tax refund possible.  Parish admitted that she prepared false claims for income tax refunds because she expected to receive part of her clients' income tax refunds once the refund checks were cashed.

In December 2008 Parish agreed to work for one of the individuals that trained her and that individual had Parish begin working as the sole return preparer at Flash Tax Service, located in a convenience store in Cincinnati, Ohio.  Parish worked as the only return preparer at this Flash Tax Service location for the 2009 and 2010 filing seasons.

Parish prepared fraudulent income tax returns that contained false items, such as self-employment income and statutory employee status.  In addition, Parish claimed these same false items on her own individual income tax returns for the 2007 through 2010 income tax years.  By claiming false self-employment income on the Forms Schedule C, Parish and her clients qualified for the Earned Income Tax Credit and the Additional Child Tax Credit, which generated higher income tax refunds.  Also, by claiming the false statutory employee election, Parish and her clients were exempt from being subject to self-employment taxes.

In addition, once the clients' received their income tax refund checks, Parish requested, and often received, a portion of the income tax refunds that were generated from the false income tax returns.  Parish negotiated this amount with her clients, receiving $300 for one false dependent, $500 for two false dependents, and $700 for three or more false dependents.

During the 2008 and 2009 income tax years, Parish prepared at least 365 false income tax returns.  The total tax loss to the IRS based on the fraudulent income tax returns Parish prepared for her clients and herself was $1,985.136.

"Tiffany Parish systematically defrauded the government and the taxpaying public," said Darryl Williams, Special Agent in Charge, IRS, Criminal Investigation, Cincinnati Field Office.  "At the IRS, protecting taxpayer money is a matter we take very seriously.  IRS Criminal Investigation will continue to vigorously pursue those who unjustly enrich themselves by preparing false claims for refunds."

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