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Punishment Handed Down Against Sister Tax Preparer Team In Multi-Million Dollar Tax Fraud

By Tim Sullivan 18 hours ago236 views

FILE - The Internal Revenue Service 1040 tax form for 2022 is seen on April 17, 2023. Majorities of U.S. taxpayers say the amount they pay in taxes is too high, with many saying that they receive a poor value for the taxes they do pay, according to a new poll from the University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy and The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. (AP Photo/Jon Elswick, File)

Story by TIM SULLIVAN

Two of three Valley sisters will spend time in prison for a tax fraud scheme that conned the IRS out of more than $3.5 million.

Punishments were handed down Wednesday against Maria Lourdes Campos, Elizabeth Romo, and Gloria Romo, all of whom had pleaded guilty in May to conspiring to prepare and file fraudulent tax returns.

Campos owned and operated Campos Tax Service, and employed her two sisters, who prosecutors say falsified thousands of federal income tax returns during a 3-year period. According to the indictment, the three entered inflated deductions for business expenses, child care credits, or residential energy credits to get their clients larger refunds.

Campos received the longest sentence – 3-1/2 years in prison. Elizabeth Romo was sentenced to three years. Gloria Romo was given a 1-year term of supervised release. The sisters were also ordered to pay a total of more than $280,000 in restitution.