Dearborn Couple Pleads Guilty To Scamming Government

DEARBORN, MI — A Dearborn couple pleaded guilty Wednesday to falsely declaring bankruptcy, underreporting their income and wrongly receiving food stamps, federal officials said.

Abraham Elsaghir, 52, pleaded guilty to one count of false statement to an agency of the United States, one count of federal income tax evasion, and one count of bankruptcy fraud. Samar Elsaghir, 51, pleaded guilty to one count of false statement to an agency of the United States and one count of federal income tax evasion, according to a news release. They’re expected to be sentenced June 23, where both face maximum penalties of five years in prison.

The Elsaghirs admitted to wrongly taking nearly $60,000 in food stamps from 2014 to 2020, and that they owed the IRS an additional $70,000 for tax calendar years 2014-2018, after federal officials accused the couple of making false declarations in the bankruptcy petition by failing to report and underreporting income.

The couple's debt was wiped clean in their bankruptcy case, when in fact Abraham Elsaghir admitted he owed more than $166,000 to unsecured creditors in the bankruptcy case, federal officials said.

"The Elsaghir’s plea serves as an important reminder that Federal income tax compliance should be equally shared among all Americans," Special Agent in Charge Sarah Kull, of the IRS Criminal Investigation at the Detroit field office said. "Conspiring to defraud the government with a scheme to underreport taxable income and to steal money meant for low income families is unlawful and shameful."