TAX NEWS - 2010

Foreign national charged with stealing $200k in tax refunds

BOSTON -- A Belarusian national living in Nantucket was charged on Thursday for participating in an online scheme to steal income tax refunds from U.S. taxpayers.

According to court documents, Mikalai Mardakhayeu, 31, and his co-conspirators allegedly lured victims by operating fraudulent sites claiming to be authorized by the IRS. These sites offered free online tax return preparation and electronic tax return filing.

Those involved collected information from the victims and filed the tax returns with the IRS. These returns had allegedly been altered so refunds would be wired to bank accounts Mardakhayeu controlled.

It is estimated that approximately $200,000 in tax refunds had been stolen.

Mardakhayeu has been charged with nine counts of wire fraud and one count of conspiracy. If convicted for wire fraud he can face up to 20 years in prison followed by three years supervised release. If convicted of conspiracy he can face an additional five years imprisonment.