Providence前移民律师在联邦法院认罪：骗取移民客户约9.8万美元并逃税 12月17日量刑
位于罗德岛州 Providence 县的 Providence 市——罗德岛区联邦检察官办公室10月19日宣布，前移民律师 Joseph Molina-Flynn 当日在联邦法院认罪，罪名是电汇诈骗与逃税各一项。移民局 USCIS（U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services）为本案调查提供了协助。
现年43岁的 Molina-Flynn 此前在罗德岛州与马萨诸塞州执业。他承认在2019年至2023年间设计并实施了一套诈骗移民客户的方案：向客户收取法律服务与申请费用，却没有提供相应服务，还向部分客户提供有关其移民案件进展的虚假信息。他承认共从移民客户处收取约9.8万美元，涉及未提供的服务与未发生的开支，并把骗得的资金用于维持律所运营和个人开支。
在逃税部分，Molina-Flynn 承认自己没有提交2021年度联邦所得税申报表，并采取步骤隐瞒收入与工资税义务，包括用律所的运营账户支付个人开支。按照认罪协议，双方将在量刑时建议法庭认定，其逃税造成的税收损失至少为55万美元、低于150万美元。
根据认罪协议条款，Molina-Flynn 必须向电汇诈骗案的受害人支付83,265美元赔偿；还必须补报2019年至2023纳税年度的准确联邦税表，并向美国财政部补缴所欠联邦税款、利息与罚款。他的量刑日期定在12月17日，最终刑期将由一名联邦地区法院法官参照美国量刑指南与其他法定因素裁定。电汇诈骗的法定最高刑为20年联邦监禁，逃税的法定最高刑为5年联邦监禁，两项罪名还各带罚款与刑后监督释放的可能。
本案由移民执法局 ICE（U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement）国土安全调查部门、国税局 IRS、Providence 警察局与联邦调查局 FBI 调查，移民局 USCIS 提供协助。
Former Providence Immigration Attorney Pleads Guilty to Wire Fraud and Tax Evasion, Sentencing Set for Dec. 17
PROVIDENCE, R.I. — The U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Rhode Island announced on October 19 that former immigration attorney Joseph Molina-Flynn pleaded guilty in federal court to one count of wire fraud and one count of tax evasion. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) provided valuable assistance to the investigation.
Molina-Flynn, 43, formerly practiced immigration law in Rhode Island and Massachusetts. He admitted that between 2019 and 2023 he devised and executed a scheme to defraud immigration clients by collecting legal and filing fees for services he did not perform and providing some clients with false information about the status of their immigration matters. He admitted collecting approximately $98,000 from immigration clients for legal services not provided and expenses not incurred, and using the fraudulently obtained funds to operate his law practice and pay personal expenses.
Molina-Flynn also admitted that he failed to file a federal income tax return for 2021 and took steps to conceal income and payroll tax obligations, including by using his law firm's operating account to pay personal expenses. Under the plea agreement, the parties will recommend at sentencing that the tax loss attributable to his tax evasion is at least $550,000 but less than $1.5 million.
Under the terms of the plea agreement, Molina-Flynn must pay $83,265 in restitution to victims of the wire fraud scheme. He must also file accurate delinquent federal tax returns for tax years 2019 through 2023 and pay the U.S. Treasury outstanding federal taxes, interest, and penalties. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Dec. 17. The sentence will be determined by a U.S. District Court judge after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. Wire fraud carries a statutory maximum sentence of up to 20 years in federal prison, and tax evasion carries a statutory maximum of up to five years; each count also carries potential fines and periods of supervised release.
The matter was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Homeland Security Investigations, the IRS, the Providence Police Department, and the FBI, with assistance from USCIS.
发布：GSM·美国（发布链接）
图片来源：图：位于 Providence 的联邦大楼与美国法院大楼外观（Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse），罗德岛区联邦地区法院所在地，本案在此认罪。Carol M. Highsmith 摄，公共领域，取自维基共享资源。Photo: Exterior of the Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse in Providence, seat of the U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island, where the plea was entered. Photo by Carol M. Highsmith, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
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