Miami tax preparer sentenced to 30 months for tax fraud scheme

MIAMI, Fla.—A Miami tax return preparer has been sentenced to prison for tax fraud, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida (USAO) has announced.

According to the USAO, on June 7, Jean Wesner Pierre Louis, 52, of Miami, was sentenced to 30 months in federal prison, followed by one year of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay over $4 million in restitution for aiding and assisting in the preparation and presentation of false tax returns.

Mr Pierre Louis was the president and chief operating officer of a tax preparation business operating in Miami-Dade County. Pierre Louis pleaded guilty in February 2024.

For tax years 2015 through 2019, Pierre Louis prepared tax returns for his clients on multiple occasions, falsely claiming certain credits that increased the refund amount owed or decreased the tax amount owed.

For those same tax years, on multiple occasions, Mr Pierre Louis prepared tax returns for his clients that falsely claimed losses on an IRS Schedule C for businesses that did not exist. This fraudulent activity increased the amount of refund owed or decreased the amount of taxes owed.

U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida and Special Agent in Charge Matthew D. Line of the IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), Miami Field Office, announced the verdict.

IRS-CI Miami investigated the case.