Cleveland Heights Man Sentenced to 6 Years in Prison for Identity Theft

CLEVELAND HEIGHTS, OH - Two years of identity theft and tax violations have landed a Cleveland Heights man a nearly six year prison sentence. Darryl Farmer, 45, was found guilty last year of one count of conspiracy to defraud, nine counts of false tax claims, eight counts of aiding in the preparation of false tax returns, two counts of wire fraud and two counts of aggravated identity theft.

Between 2010 and 2012, Farmer posed as a tax preparer who paid recruiters a "referral fee" to provide him identifications and personal identifiers. He then used the fake information to file false tax returns, including claiming tax credits for businesses that did not exists, court documents say.

Farmer also opened personal and business bank accounts, in the names of his stolen identities. he would then deposit the tax return refunds into those accounts. He falsely claimed more than $100,000 from the IRS between 2010 and 2012.

“This defendant stole identities and stole from taxpayers,” US Attorney Carole Rendon said. “This prison sentence is a reflection of how wantonly he broke the law.”

“Individuals who commit refund fraud and identity theft of this magnitude and with this degree of trickery, dishonesty and deceit, deserve to be punished to the fullest extent of the law,” Troy Stemen, Acting Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation, Cincinnati Field Office said.

U.S. District Judge John Adams sentenced Farmer to 70 months in prison and ordered him to pay $100,230 in restitution.

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