北卡罗来纳州Rocky Mount报税师Chowan Watson认罪：2017至2023年虚报退税致税款损失约390万美元，最高面临36个月监禁
美国司法部北卡罗来纳州东区联邦检察官办公室10月28日宣布，北卡罗来纳州Rocky Mount市55岁的报税师Chowan Watson已在联邦法院认罪，承认一项协助准备虚假报税表的罪名，涉案税款损失约390万美元。Watson最高面临36个月联邦监禁，将于今年晚些时候宣判，并已同意向美国国税局（IRS）支付赔偿。
据检察官办公室公布，Watson与此前已认罪的Angela Dickens共同经营Empire Tax Service报税公司，该公司后改名为K&J Tax Service，营业地点在Rocky Mount。2017年至2023年间，两人通过虚增报税表上的「其他1099预扣税」（Other 1099 Withholding）金额，提交了数百份虚假联邦退税申报，人为抬高纳税人的退税额，并从中收取过高费用。检方称，这套做法造成的税款总损失约为390万美元。
联邦检察官Ellis Boyle在声明中表示，Watson与Dickens利用了东卡罗来纳纳税人对正规律报税服务的信任，把报税业务变成了个人牟利的工具，案件向报税诈骗者发出明确信号：作弊者不会得逞。国税局刑事调查局（IRS-CI）Charlotte外地办公室负责人Donald “Trey” Eakins表示，该局会顺着资金流追查破坏美国税收制度的诈骗行为，并与联邦检察官办公室持续合作追究责任。
本案认罪由首席联邦地区法官Richard E. Myers II受理，案号为5:26-CR-125-M，由国税局刑事调查局负责调查。司法部在稿件中说明，其于2026年4月7日设立的国家欺诈执法部门正在全国范围内调查和起诉针对公众的欺诈案件。
North Carolina Tax Preparer Chowan Watson Pleads Guilty in $3.9 Million Tax Fraud Scheme in Rocky Mount
The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina announced on October 28 that Chowan Watson, 55, of Rocky Mount, North Carolina, pleaded guilty in federal court to one count of aiding and assisting in the preparation of a false tax return, resulting in a tax loss of approximately $3.9 million. Watson faces a maximum penalty of 36 months in federal prison when sentenced later this year and has agreed to pay restitution to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Watson and Angela Dickens, who previously pleaded guilty, operated Empire Tax Service, later renamed K&J Tax Service, in Rocky Mount. From 2017 to 2023, the two fraudulently filed hundreds of tax returns by inflating the 'Other 1099 Withholding' amounts, which inflated taxpayer refunds and allowed them to take excessive fees from those refunds. Total tax losses are approximately $3.9 million.
U.S. Attorney Ellis Boyle said Watson and Dickens preyed on the trust of hardworking Eastern North Carolinian taxpayers and turned a legitimate tax preparation service into a personal profit machine, adding that cheaters never win. Donald 'Trey' Eakins, Special Agent in Charge of IRS Criminal Investigation's Charlotte Field Office, said IRS-CI follows the money to uncover fraudulent schemes and will continue working with the U.S. Attorney's Office to bring offenders to justice.
Chief U.S. District Judge Richard E. Myers II accepted the plea. The case, No. 5:26-CR-125-M, was investigated by IRS Criminal Investigation.
来源：GSM·美国（原文链接）
图片来源：图：位于华盛顿特区宪法大道的美国国税局（IRS）总部大楼（资料图）。本案由国税局刑事调查局调查。图片来源：Wikimedia Commons（IRS Building Constitution Avenue.jpg）。 / Photo: The Internal Revenue Service headquarters building on Constitution Avenue in Washington, D.C. (file photo). The case was investigated by IRS Criminal Investigation. Source: Wikimedia Commons.
