McALLEN, Texas – A local tax preparer is set to make her initial appearance in federal court on charges of filing false tax returns on behalf of taxpayers, announced U.S. Attorney Jennifer B. Lowery.
A federal grand jury sitting in Brownsville returned a nine-count indictment Feb. 15, against Linda Lopez. .
Lopez is expected to appear at 9 today before U.S. Magistrate Judge J. Scott Hacker.
Lopez was the owner and operator of Premier Tax Solutions in Mission, according to the indictment. The charges allege she submitted to the IRS false and fraudulent Form 1040 tax returns and accompanying Form 2106, Form 2106-EZ, Schedule A and/or Form 5695 for tax years 2015 and 2016.
Lopez allegedly included Form 2106/2106-EZ and Schedule A which claimed false or inflated unreimbursed employee business expenses. False or inflated residential energy credits were on Form 5695, according to the charges.
The indictment alleges these falsities resulted in the filing of tax returns to the IRS claiming refunds due to the taxpayers they otherwise were not entitled to receive.
If convicted, Lopez faces up to three years in prison and a possible $100,000 maximum fine for each count of conviction.
IRS-Criminal Investigation is investigating the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Andrew Swartz and Asha Natarajan prosecuted the case.
An indictment is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence. A defendant is presumed innocent unless convicted through due process of law.