An Illinois tax preparer has pleaded guilty to falsifying both her clients’ returns and her personal 1040s. Erica Early, formerly of Robins and Richton Park, Ill., caused the government a tax loss of about $515,990, according to the Internal Revenue Service.Early operated a tax business for clients in Illinois, Wisconsin, and Indiana from January 2014 through April 2019. She used tools such as inflating client income to maximize the Earned Income Tax Credit and falsely claimed education-related credits to boost client refunds.
An employee of the U.S. Post Service during time, she claimed education credits for which she was not eligible on her personal return. She often charged clients $1,000 for preparation of a basic tax return.
Early is scheduled for sentencing on October 4 and faces a maximum sentence of three years in prison.
