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Columbia tax preparer arrested, faces fraud charges
Melinda Waldrop //May 4, 2022//
Listen to this articleA Columbia tax preparer has been arrested and charged with 19 counts of willfully making or assisting in false or fraudulent returns.
S.C. Department of Revenue agents arrested Shervonne Simmons, 49, of Columbia today. From 2017 to 2020, Simmons assisted in the preparation of false tax returns for nine taxpayers, according to a news release from the department. A departmental investigation found that the state individual tax returns included fraudulent deductions that cost the state $24,494, with a total income of $402,469 reported instead of the correct amount of $758,064.
None of the taxpayers consented to or had knowledge of the fraudulent deductions, according to the release.
If convicted, Simmons faces a maximum sentence for each count of five years in prison and/or a fine of $500, plus the cost of prosecution. She is being held in the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center pending a bond hearing.
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