Justice Department takes action against Florida tax return preparer

FLORIDA – The U.S. Department of Justice is seeking to shut down a Florida tax preparer it accuses of preparing returns that claim fictitious businesses and fabricated business losses.

According to the Department of Justice (DOJ), the United States has filed a complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida against Tyrone Johnson and TJ Professional Services, LLC. According to the DOJ, Johnson has prepared and continues to prepare taxes for customers in the Tampa, Florida, area.

The civil complaint seeks to enjoin the defendants from preparing federal income tax returns for others.

The complaint also requests that the court require Johnson and the business he controls to disgorge the fees they allegedly obtained by preparing federal tax returns that make grossly incompetent, negligent, reckless, and/or fraudulent claims.

The civil complaint alleges that since at least 2016, the defendants prepared returns that claim fictitious businesses and fabricated business losses. As a result, the complaint alleges defendants decreased the amount of taxable income reported to make it appear that their customers were entitled to a larger refund than they were in fact, entitled to receive.

The complaint further alleges that defendants do not identify themselves as paid preparers on their customer’s returns but instead operate as “ghost preparers” that file returns using six-digit PINs affiliated with individual customers.

According to the complaint, the defendants’ schemes have cost the Treasury millions of dollars in lost tax revenue.

Deputy Assistant Attorney General David A. Hubbert of the Justice Department’s Tax Division made the announcement.