Buckhead Man Pleads Guilty to Tax Refund Fraud, Sentenced to Prison

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A Buckhead man will spend at least 12 years in prison after pleading guilty for his role in a massive scheme which saw him collect over $1 million in fraudulent state tax returns, the Cobb County District Attorney’s Office announced Friday.

Shannon Jay Bradley, 35, pleaded guilty on Friday to 45 charges including racketeering, money laundering, identity fraud, and burglary. As a condition of this plea deal, Bradley must testify against co-defendant Risha Michelle Hardin in her upcoming case.

Bradley admitted that he came into possession of computer servers stolen from five tax preparation offices in Cobb County during December of 2012. The servers had the identifiable information of nearly 2,000 taxpayers, which Bradley used to file false state tax returns for himself. With the more than $1 million Bradley received in fraudulent returns, he bought four residences, a 2012 Porsche, and a 2007 Chevrolet.

Following Bradley’s plea, Superior Court Judge Reuben M. Green sentenced him to a 40 year sentence, with 12 to be served in prison. He was also ordered to make more than $1 million in restitution payments to the Georgia Department of Revenue. Green also forfeited Bradley’s residences, including one in Buckhead, and both of his cars, all of which were seized during the investigation.

“I am grateful that Judge Green saw that a white-collar criminal may not have a gun pointed at your face, but the effects of what they do can be just as devastating, or more so,” said Deputy Chief ADA John Melvin, who prosecuted this case, in a statement. “This sentence takes away the fruits of the crime, and imposes substantial prison time and restitution.”

Charges against Bradley’s two sisters were dropped when investigators determined they had nothing to do with the crime.