Michigan Man Sentenced to Five Years in Maryland for Tax Refund Laundering Conspiracy

A Detroit man has been sentenced to five years in federal prison for his involvement in a scheme to launder over half a million dollars in stolen tax refunds using stolen identities and pre-paid debit cards. Jerome Brown, 42, was sentenced in Maryland after pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering, with restitution set at over $600,000.

Between February and August 2020, Brown worked with individuals in Michigan and Nigeria to move fraudulent proceeds derived from both federal and North Carolina state tax refunds. The funds, obtained using stolen personal information from identity theft victims, including those in Maryland, were loaded onto Green Dot pre-paid debit cards. Brown used the cards to withdraw funds, buy money orders, and purchase cryptocurrency, thereby laundering the money before transferring a portion overseas.

The IRS and the North Carolina Department of Revenue had issued the refunds based on fraudulent claims filed using the stolen identities. Brown and his associates swiftly cashed out the funds after they were loaded onto the cards. The cards were purchased in the U.S. and sent to a co-conspirator in Nigeria, who directed when and how to withdraw the money.

Brown personally cashed out more than $540,000 from the pre-paid debit cards and kept roughly 40 percent of the proceeds. He sent over $324,000 in Bitcoin to his Nigerian co-conspirator. In total, the conspiracy involved fraudulent applications for more than $1.25 million from the IRS and nearly $589,000 from North Carolina tax authorities. The group used multiple strategies to hide their activities, including using different withdrawal locations and transferring money to third parties.

The investigation was conducted by federal law enforcement and oversight agencies, including the IRS Criminal Investigation Division, U.S. Secret Service, and the Offices of Inspector General from the Department of Homeland Security and Social Security Administration.

Article by multiple RFHC contributors, based upon information from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Maryland

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