Leader Of $15 Million Tax Conspiracy Convicted In Ohio

MAPLE HEIGHTS, OH — The leader of a false tax return conspiracy has been convicted in Northeast Ohio. Keith Jeffries was accused of filing false tax returns that caused $15 million in returns to be issued over several years.

“These defendants wreaked havoc on the IRS by misusing their Electronic Filing Identification Number and Preparer Tax Identification Number to electronically file fraudulent income tax returns for their clients that generated inflated false income tax refunds,” said Ryan L. Korner, Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation, Cincinnati Field Office.

Jeffries ran a tax prep business called Krew Time. The company had three locations, Jeffries' home in Maple Heights, the back offices of a MetroPCS store in Cleveland, and a commercial building on E. 140th Street. Jeffries and three other people prepared their false returns for clients at those locations.

Krew Time clients would get a majority of the refunds, with Jeffries and the other defendants getting a portion of the refund as a tax preparation fee, court documents said. Jeffries and the other defendants would file false itemized deductions, false business income expenses, false tax credit information, false medical expenses, false filing statuses and other information to obtain income tax refunds — refunds the clients were not entitled to.

The false filings were made between 2011 and 2016, court documents said.

“This group spent years ripping off the federal government by filing hundreds of fake tax returns,” U.S. Attorney Justin E. Herdman said. “These defendants took advantage of programs designed to help sick people or struggling students and instead used them to enrich themselves.”

Jeffries was convicted of conspiracy to defraud the United States and multiple counts of aiding and abetting the preparation of false tax returns. He will be sentenced on January 8, 2019. Three other defendants, Brian Peacock, of Sandusky, Linnette Coleman, and Nicole Pugh, both of Cleveland, already pleaded guilty for their roles in the conspiracy.

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