PHOENIX (AP) - A Phoenix tax preparer has been sentenced to prison for falsifying returns and defrauding the federal government of more than $120,000.
The U.S. Attorney's Office for Arizona said Wednesday that 58-year-old Oscar Hernandez has been ordered to serve 18 months in prison. Hernandez must also pay roughly $121,500 in restitution.
Federal prosecutors say Hernandez admitted to filing at least 44 fraudulent tax returns between 2010 and 2013.
Through his business, R Robin Tax Services, Hernandez manipulated his clients' returns. He would do this by adding false dependents, claiming false exemptions and credits and improperly claiming "head of household" filing status.
His sentencing comes a week after another Phoenix tax preparer, Elias Bermudez, was given the same sentence for the same offense.
