Date: March 15, 2022 Contact: newsroom@ci.irs.gov ST. LOUIS – United States District Judge Steven R. Clark sentenced St. Louis business owner Candice Belger to 12 months in federal prison. Belger previously pleaded guilty to one count of willfully assisting in the preparation and presentation of a fraudulent federal tax return to the Internal Revenue Service in connection with her work as a tax preparer for A1 Tax Service. The judge ordered Belger to serve 12 months and one day and to pay $279,655 in restitution. According to court documents, from 2013-2016, Belger willfully aided and assisted in the preparation and filing of at least 22 false tax returns on behalf of clients. On these tax returns, Belger submitted false self-employment business losses, itemized deductions, and education credits that claimed the taxpayers in question had been students during the tax years. She took these actions to increase the refund amounts of her clients. Belger was listed as the preparer on all the false returns. The specific charge Belger pleaded guilty to involved a 2014 U.S. Individual Income Tax Return she prepared and electronically filed that included a false net business loss in the amount of $27,211; itemized deductions in the amount of $32,027; and a tax overpayment in the amount of $14,576. Belger knew that all the totals were false, including that the true amount of tax overpaid by the client in question was substantially less than stated. A search warrant was executed at A1 Tax Service in March 2017. Client files, tax returns, and other documents were seized from the business. The items seized confirmed that Belger created returns with false items including household help income, Schedule A Expenses; education credits; and Schedule C income and expenses. Belger was paid for preparing these returns. “This case illustrates exactly why IRS-CI has been sounding warnings since the beginning of the tax season. Taxpayers must do their due diligence in choosing a reputable tax preparer,” said St. Louis Field Office Special Agent in Charge Tyler Hatcher. “Ms. Belger earned a living by cheating the government to get higher tax refunds for her clients. Those clients are accountable for the numbers submitted to the IRS on their behalf.” The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Gwendolyn Carroll and investigated by special agents from IRS-Criminal Investigation.
