Date: September 20, 2021 Contact: newsroom@ci.irs.gov Jacksonville, Florida — U.S. District Judge Marcia Morales Howard has sentenced Paul Berkins Moise to 35 months in federal prison for aiding and assisting others with the filing of fraudulent tax returns and for filing fraudulent tax returns on his own behalf. He was also ordered to pay restitution to the United States for a tax loss of $77,929. Moise was found guilty on April 29, 2021, after a jury trial. According to testimony and evidence presented at trial, Moise owned and operated a tax preparation business in Jacksonville. Between February 2013 and March 2017, Moise defrauded the IRS by filing returns for his clients in which he grossly inflated deductions for state and local sales taxes, unreimbursed employee expenses, and gifts to charity by cash or check. For example, on one tax return, Moise claimed a sales tax deduction of $5,883 for a client who had a gross income of $43,476. In order for that client to claim a sales tax deduction that large, the client would have had to have made taxable purchases totaling $89,926 (including the tax) – or more than twice the client's claimed gross income. Trial evidence also showed that Moise grossly underreported his own income on tax returns he filed for himself for the years 2013, 2014, and 2015. On his 2013 return, Moise reported $10,160 in income when he had actually earned at least $83,848 that year. On his 2014 return, Moise reported $2,695 in income when he had actually earned $252,652 that year. On his 2015 return, Moise reported $10,255 in income when he had actually earned $234,936 that year. "Moise ran a tax preparation business that filed fraudulent returns on behalf of his clients grossly inflating deductions and gifts to charity, while at the same time, significantly under reporting his own income," said IRS Criminal Investigation Tampa Field Office Special Agent in Charge Brian Payne. "He cheated all Americans, since we all pay our fair share for the government services and protections that we enjoy. Now he will pay the price in prison." This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Arnold B. Corsmeier.
