LAS VEGAS
Officials stated that a Mexican citizen entered the U.S. illegally—made his initial appearance Wednesday for alleged fraudulent soliciting of thousands of dollars from victims in exchange for filing false tax returns.
The defendant falsely claimed that he was an IRS officer who could obtain large amounts of money from the IRS if the victims paid him to apply to a fictitious IRS program, according to authorities.
Francisco Ivan Velazquez, 52, is charged by superseding indictment with three counts of wire fraud, two counts of impersonation of officer or employee of the United States, and five counts of aiding and assisting in the preparation of a false tax return.
If convicted, Velazquez faces up to 20 years in prison for each count of wire fraud, three years for each count of filing a false tax return, and for each count of impersonating an officer or employee of the United States.
Velazquez is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
The superseding indictment was filed on Aug. 30 and unsealed when the defendant made his initial appearance.
According to allegations contained in the superseding indictment, from March 2016 through March 2018, Velazquez told the victims that he was an IRS employee and was able to secure large monetary refunds for them from the IRS.
He falsely claimed that such funds were available from a purported IRS program that allowed people who had previously lost a home to foreclosure to recoup money by applying to the IRS and filing certain documents.
Velazquez advised victims that he would submit an application for them to recover the funds in exchange for a fee.
Velazquez would then prepare and file false tax returns and other documents with the IRS, claiming that the victim had federal tax withholdings in excess of $100,000. He also fraudulently claimed that the victim qualified for an income tax refund of over $100,000, officials stated.
This case was investigated by IRS Criminal Investigation and the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration.
Tax Division Trial Attorney Thomas W. Flynn and Assistant U.S. Attorney Eric C. Schmale are prosecuting the case.