Falsifying Tax Returns Leads To Alexandria Man's Guilty Plea

ALEXANDRIA, VA — An accountant from Alexandria pleaded guilty Wednesday for his role in filing false tax returns that led to over $250,000 in federal tax loss.

Endalkachew Asfaw, 48, of Alexandria, pleaded guilty in DC federal court to to aiding and assisting in the filing of a false tax return and causing at least $250,000 of loss to the Internal Revenue Service. The charge could carry a sentence up to three years in prison and potential financial penalties. Asfaw agreed to pay restitution to the United States as part of a plea agreement.

Prosecutors say Asfaw operated Endalk and Yohannes Associated, L.P. in DC with a business partner since 2011. Asfaw is a certified public accountant in Alexandria, and the two business partners prepared around 10,000 tax returns from 2016 to 2019.

From 2017 to 2017, he aided in the preparation of false income tax returns, according to court documents. Asfaw did this by overstating unreimbursed employee business expenses on the clients' Schedule A deductions, including uniforms and unreimbursed mileage expenses. Asfaw also admitted in his plea agreement to making fraudulent Schedule C expenses and deducting exemptions that his clients could not claim in order to get his clients larger tax refund. According to the plea agreement, the false tax returns resulted in a total tax loss topping $250,000.

"Tax Practitioners entrusted to prepare accurate tax returns should not lead their clients astray by falsifying returns prepared on their behalf," said Darrell J. Waldon, an acting special agent in charge at the FBI's Washington Field Office. "We will continue to investigate those who fraudulently prepare and file income tax returns, effectively stealing money from the government."

A judge scheduled Asfaw's sentencing for Nov. 17.