CHARLESTON, W.Va. — A guilty verdict has been handed down for the leader of an international conspiracy who filed false U.S. tax returns and obtained millions of dollars in refunds.
West Virginians were among those who had their identities stolen and false returns filed in their names, according to U.S. Attorney William Ihlenfeld.
Ayodele Arasokun was convicted by a jury on 21 counts of wire fraud and aggravated identify theft. Arasokun orchestrated a scheme from a location just outside of Paris to file 1,701 false returns and claim $9.1 million in refunds.
A total of $2.2 million in fraudulent refunds were actually paid by the Internal Revenue Service.
Evidence presented at trial established that Arasokun caused the money obtained from the IRS to be transferred to pre-paid debit cards or to checking accounts that he was monitoring.
“The jury’s verdict sends a clear message to criminals everywhere: don’t mess with the IRS,” Ihlenfeld said in a statement. “We have the best cybercrime investigators in the world and if you tamper with our tax system, we will find you, extradite you, and incarcerate you.”
Investigators discovered that Arasokun, originally from Nigeria, was tracking about 700 U.S.-based accounts containing more than $50 million.
Arasokun is being housed at the Eastern Regional Jail in Martinsburg where he will remain until sentencing.