Birmingham Tax Preparer Fined After Being Charged with Several Counts of Tax Evasion and Fraud
Birmingham, AL – Tax payers in Birmingham, Alabama may want to start looking into hiring a tax lawyer after a local tax preparer was charged with tax evasion and fraud.
A recent news article on al.com explains that Eunice F. Plummer, 35, a Birmingham tax preparer, was found to have committed several actions that are in direct violation of federal tax laws. According to a statement from federal authorities, Plummer was charged with three counts of tax evasion and eight counts of assisting in the preparation of fraudulent tax returns.
Plummer, who owns M&P Tax Services in Birmingham, was accused of preparing and submitting false tax returns in which she did not report the full amount of taxable income that was earned through her business. The defendant deposited the income from her business into an account that was under a relative’s name. This allowed her to avoid having to pay the correct (and much larger) income tax total that was owed to the IRS for the three year period.
Tax crimes are not taken lightly by either the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) or federal authorities, and can lead to expensive penalties and incarceration. In this specific instance, Plummer chose to enter a plea agreement with the U.S. Attorney’s Office that will allow her to pay the IRS $104,098 for taxes that were not paid on income earned between 2011 and 2013, as well as a separate $67,206 fine related to the tax fraud charges.
In addition to being charged with the preparation of false returns for her clients, Plummer was also accused of requesting over-the-top refunds for customers from the IRS. Plummer added false deductions and expenses to her clients’ tax returns which resulted in a$67,206 tax loss to the
As of yet, authorities have not stated whether or not Plummer will also be sentenced to serve time in prison for the tax crimes. If she does end up being sent to jail, she could be looking at spending several years behind bars. According to the IRS, any person who knowingly attempts to evade the payment of taxes to the government can face up to five years in prison.
Plummer was also lucky to have only been ordered to pay a total of $171,304 in fines to the IRS, since penalties can reach up to $500,000 for corporations.
Though the case is still under review, Plummer isn’t the only one who could be held responsible for the crimes. These charges may also affect individuals who have worked with the defendant, and may even lead those who solicited her services to face charges of their own – especially if authorities determine that Plummer’s clients had knowledge of what she was doing and complied, or if any of her customers are accused of requesting her to perform illegal tax services.
Expensive fines and imprisonment can be imposed on Plummer’s clients if they are found to have a substantial connection to the IRS crimes. An experienced Alabama tax attorney can help those who have turned to M&P Tax Services for tax-related matters, including income tax returns and business tax preparation.
