Florida Tax Preparer Permanently Barred for Fabricating Client Deductions, Ordered to Pay Back $558,520
The U.S. Department of Justice announced on November 10 that the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida has permanently barred tax preparer Juan Humberto Garcia and his business, The Tax Master of BVL, Inc., from preparing federal tax returns for others, and ordered them to pay $558,520. The court also barred Marcos Yariel Figueroa from preparing returns for others for two years.
The defendants stipulated to the injunction following the court's entry of a preliminary injunction on February 13, 2026. In granting the preliminary injunction, the court relied primarily on testimony from more than a dozen customers who said deductions and expenses reported on their returns had not been incurred by them and were claimed without their knowledge. The court found strong proof that the defendants fabricated deductions and losses, and noted that they continued to prepare fraudulent returns even after being served with the government's complaint.
Under the permanent injunction, Garcia and his company may not prepare or file tax returns for others, work for or hold an ownership stake in any tax return preparation business, advise anyone about preparing a tax return, maintain a PTIN or EFIN, or transfer customer lists or customer information. Garcia must also permanently close all tax preparation stores he owns directly or indirectly. Figueroa, after his two-year bar, must successfully complete the IRS Annual Filing Season Program and provide proof of completion to the United States before resuming return preparation.
The $558,520 disgorgement represents tax preparation fees Garcia and the company received from January 1, 2021 through December 31, 2024, for preparing returns containing false or fraudulent claims, deductions, credits, income, expenses or other information that understated customers' federal income tax liabilities.
Deputy Assistant Attorney General Joshua Wu of the Civil Division's Tax Litigation Branch made the announcement. Tax Litigation Branch attorney Franklin Sandrea-Rivero handled the matter. The Justice Department said it has obtained injunctions against hundreds of unscrupulous tax preparers over the past decade.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
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