The Tax Fraud Blog – Qui Tam Attorneys

Lydia Hernandez of Lydia Hernandez Tax Services in Salinas, California pleaded guilty to tax fraud charges on July 27, 2009 in Federal Court. As a result she was sentenced this week to 15 months in prison for tax evasion including aiding and assisting in preparing false tax returns. She was also ordered to pay $35,433 in restitution, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said, and three years of supervised release.

Authorities said Hernandez prepared 39 income tax returns on behalf of 13 clients for the 2002 through 2005 tax years.

In the plea agreement, they said, Hernandez admitted that she prepared false returns in order to reduce the taxable income for the clients and obtain a bigger refund for them than they were entitled to receive.

Hernandez also admitted that for the 2004 tax year, she underreported her business income by $51,129 on her individual tax returns.

She will begin her sentence September 27, 2010.