HARRISBURG – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Jeremy Baney, age 50, formerly of Lycoming County and currently an inmate at SCI Smithfield, Pennsylvania, was sentenced on November 3, 2021, to 12 months’ imprisonment by United States District Court Judge Sylvia H. Rambo for his participation in a scheme to file fraudulent federal income tax returns from state prison. Judge Rambo also ordered the 12-month sentence to run concurrent to Baney’s current state sentence.
According to Acting United States Attorney Bruce D. Brandler, Baney pled guilty to obtaining personal identification information from other SCI Smithfield state inmates and using that information to file federal income tax returns. The federal tax refunds were then deposited into local bank accounts set up by either Baney or a now deceased confederate. The false claims made to the United States amounted to $69,510 which resulted in the United States suffering a tax loss in terms of refunds amounting to $32,343. Judge Rambo ordered Baney to make restitution to the United States in the amount of $32,343.
The case was investigated by the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Criminal Investigation Division. Assistant U.S. Attorney William A. Behe prosecuted the case.
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