Greenbelt, Maryland – A federal jury convicted Devell Lincoln, age 55, of Washington, D.C., of conspiring to commit theft of public money, theft of public money and aggravated identity theft. The jury returned its verdict late on July 23, 2021.
The conviction was announced by Acting United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Jonathan F. Lenzner; Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division; and Acting Special Agent in Charge Darrell J. Waldon of the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, Washington, D.C. Field Office.
According to court documents and the evidence introduced at trial, from 2011 to 2013, Devell Lincoln conspired with Stephanie Twyman and others to cash tax refund checks fraudulently obtained by filing false federal income tax returns in the names of other individuals with the IRS. In total, the conspirators cashed more than $500,000 in fraudulent refunds at a check-cashing business and Lincoln deposited more than $150,000 in fraudulent refunds using bank accounts under his control.
From 2011 to 2013, false federal income tax returns were filed with the IRS using the names and Social Security numbers of unwitting taxpayers and seeking fraudulent refunds. When the refunds were received, Lincoln and his co-conspirators cashed the checks at a check-cashing business. In addition, from 2010 to 2014, Lincoln deposited fraudulent refunds into bank accounts under his control. While two of these accounts were in Lincoln’s name, one bank account was held in the name of a third-party, who was deceased, and one was in the name of a company registered under the deceased person’s name, with the deceased person as the signatory.
Twyman, age 49, of Clinton, Maryland, pleaded guilty to theft of government money and aggravated identity theft on July 3, 2019, for her role in the refund scheme. She is expected to be sentenced at a later date.
Lincoln is scheduled to be sentenced at a later date and faces a mandatory two years in federal prison, consecutive to any other sentence imposed, for aggravated identity theft; a maximum sentence of five years in prison for conspiracy; and a maximum sentence of ten years in prison for theft of public money. U.S. District Judge Paul W. Grimm will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Acting United States Attorney Jonathan F. Lenzner and Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg commended the IRS-CI for its work in the investigation. Mr. Lenzner thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jessica C. Collins and Trial Attorney Abigail Burger Chingos of the Tax Division, who are prosecuting the case.
For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.
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