Georgia man sentenced to prison for involvement in stolen identity tax refund fraud scheme

ATLANTA - Jahmir Antoine Robinson has been sentenced to four years, six months in federal prison for running a stolen identity refund fraud (SIRF) scheme after he stole the identities of 153 people, and caused a tax loss of approximately $409,000.

“Thieves never stop looking for ways to take what is not theirs, no matter the harm they cause to people whose identity they stole,” said U.S. Attorney Byung J. “BJay” Pak. “Robinson’s theft affect’s not only the 153 who were targeted, it touches all taxpayers.”

“With the filing season just starting this week, it is important that taxpayer’s keep their identities protected and notify the IRS immediately when someone files their tax return without authorization, “ said Thomas J. Holloman, Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation “We will continue to utilize our resources and work with the U.S. Attorney’s Office in holding those accountable who use stolen identities to file fraudulent tax returns.”

According to U.S. Attorney Pak, the charges and other information presented in court:  From April 2011 through April 2012, Jahmir Robinson ran a scheme to defraud the United States by filing false federal income tax returns using stolen identities. Robinson obtained personal identity information, including names, social security numbers, and dates of birth, of true individuals to file federal tax returns without their authorizations.  To circumvent IRS checks and balances, Robinson obtained Employer Identification Numbers (EINs) from the IRS for 17 individual corporations and filed fictitious Forms 944 so that the IRS database would automatically match employer income tax withholdings against the individual returns.

In total, Robinson used the stolen identities and EINs to file 153 fraudulent individual tax returns with the IRS for tax years 2010 and 2011.  Robinson caused the IRS to disburse refunds to an account he controlled. As a result of the scheme, Robinson caused a tax loss totaling $409,114.27.

Jahmir Antoine Robinson, 35, of Lithonia, Georgia, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Leigh Martin May to four years, six months in prison in federal prison, four years of supervised release, and ordered to pay $240,033.33 in restitution.  Robinson was convicted on these charges on November 8, 2017, after he pleaded guilty.

This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Bernita B. Malloy prosecuted the case.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016 or the IRS-Criminal investigation Public Information Officer at Joseph.Ziegler@ci.irs.gov or (216) 407-9614.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.