Date: September 21, 2022 Contact: newsroom@ci.irs.gov TOLEDO — Teresia M. Jones, of Holland, Ohio, was arraigned today in front of Magistrate Judge Darrell A. Clay in Toledo, Ohio, after she was charged in a 17-count indictment with one count of wire fraud, one count of theft of government funds, two counts of aggravated identity theft and twelve counts of money laundering. According to the indictment, beginning in January 2020, Jones is accused of defrauding the IRS through a wide-ranging tax refund scheme by submitting false and fraudulent tax filings using stolen identities and claiming millions of dollars in improper tax refunds. In addition, the indictment alleges that Jones laundered the stolen tax funds by purchasing a 2022 Cadillac Escalade for over $150,000, real property for over $850,000 and wedding planning services for $65,000, among other transactions. The indictment also identifies for forfeiture the Cadillac Escalade, a 2022 Dodge Ram truck, two parcels of real property and approximately $320,000 seized from bank accounts. Jones pleaded not guilty to all counts during the arraignment and was released on bond. An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. The defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government's burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. If convicted, the defendant's sentence will be determined by the court after a review of factors unique to this case, including the defendant's prior criminal record, if any, the defendant's role in the offenses and the characteristics of the violation. In all cases, the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum; in most cases, it will be less than the maximum. The investigation preceding the indictment was conducted by the IRS Criminal Investigations (CI) and the United States Secret Service (USSS). This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Gene Crawford and Robert Patton.
