Tax preparer gets year in prison
By Dennis Hill
Published in News on September 21, 2006 1:46 PM
NEW BERN -- A retired Air Force member who received the Bronze Star for wartime service in Vietnam was sentenced in federal court for preparing false income-tax refunds.
Joseph Lewis was sentenced to a year in prison and a year's supervised probation after his release. Investigators with the Internal Revenue Service said he prepared false reports for clients over a period of several years while working as a tax preparer and had earned a reputation for obtaining large refunds.
Special Agent Charles E. Hunter of the IRS said taxpayers should be as careful in choosing their tax preparer as they are in choosing a doctor or lawyer.
"Remember, even if someone else prepares your return, you are ultimately responsible for all the information on the tax return," Hunter said in a statement released by the IRS's Criminal Investigation Division.