An Indiana man was indicted by a federal grand jury in Hammond, Indiana for conspiracy to defraud the United States, attempting to interfere with the administration of the internal revenue laws, and aiding and assisting in the preparation and presentation of false tax returns, announced Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and Acting U.S. Attorney Clifford D. Johnson for the Northern District of Indiana.

According to the indictment, John Newlin owned and operated Quick Sam Tax Service in Gary, Indiana. The indictment alleges that from approximately August 2008 through January 2012, Newlin trained, coached, and encouraged his employees to prepare and file with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) fraudulent tax returns for taxpayer clients. Those returns allegedly contained false business income and expenses and false claims for the Earned Income Tax Credit, thereby generating IRS refunds to which the clients were not entitled. The indictment further charges that after the IRS suspended his electronic filing privileges, Newlin contracted with another individual in Georgia to transmit and file returns for Quick Sam using that individual’s tax preparer number.

An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed. Defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

If convicted, Newlin face a statutory maximum sentence of five years in prison for the conspiracy count, three years in prison for attempting to interfere with the administration of the internal revenue laws and three years in prison for each count of aiding and assisting in the preparation of false tax returns. Newlin also faces a period of supervised release, restitution and monetary penalties.

Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Goldberg and Acting U.S. Attorney Johnson commended special agents of IRS–Criminal Investigation, who conducted the investigation, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Gary Bell and John Mulcahy of the Tax Division, who are prosecuting the case.

Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found on the division’s website.