Date: December 10, 2021 Contact: newsroom@ci.irs.gov U.S. Attorney Bridget M. Brennan announced that a federal grand jury has returned a two-count indictment charging Lance Harris of Toledo, Ohio, with two counts of filing false and fictitious claims for a tax refund. According to the indictment, in January and February of 2020, the defendant submitted fraudulent claims for a tax refund to the IRS in the amount of approximately $1.1 million for tax years 2019 and 2018. An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A 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 review of factors unique to this case, including the defendant's prior criminal record, if any, the defendant's role in the offense and the characteristics of the violation. In all cases, the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum and in most cases it will be less than the maximum. This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jody L. King.
