Page 10 - Florida Sentinel 10-4-19

Local
Tampa Man Pleads Guilty To $1 Million Tax Fraud
A 29-year-old man pleaded guilty to defrauding the government of $1 mil- lion in a fraudulent income tax scheme. His sentencing date has not been set.
Earlier this week,
Ramon Christopher Blanchett admitted that he filed the false documents and received $980,000 as a tax return. He had directed the government to withhold $20,000 for his taxes for the upcoming year.
According to court docu-
ments, Blanchett electron- ically filed the tax refund, claiming that he had earned $18,497. He also claimed a state and local income tax deduction of $47,357, and an income tax withholding credit of $1 million. He at- tached two W-2 forms to the return naming his places of employment.
Blanchett received the check for $980,000 through the mail, and deposited it into his SunTrust Bank Ac- count on April 28, 2017. The
RAMON CHRISTOPHER BLANCHETT
bank notified IRS, closed his account, and place the check in its vault.
The check was released to Blanchett by mail on May 16, 2018. Blanchett took the check to SunTrust and received a new official check, which was deposited into an account he opened with Grow Financial Credit Union. He told bank offi- cials that funds were an in- heritance from his father’s estate.
On August 8, 2018, Blanchett purchased a 2016 Lexus RC350 for $51,617, using his debit card to pay $2,500 and the re- mainder with a cashier’s check. Nine days later, U. S. Magistrate Judge Amanda Arnold San- sone authorized seizure warrants and the IRS took the car and $919,421.87 in cash.
On April 23, 2018, Blanchett electronically filed his 2017 income tax form. He claimed $16,790 in wages and a withholding credit of $7,115. He stated he was due a refund of $26,477.
Blanchett made an ap- pointment with the IRS in September 2018 and was in- formed that he was being in- vestigated for the $980,000 refund he had received.
On February 2, 2019, Blanchett electronically filed his income tax paper claiming $980,000 in wages and federal withhold- ing of $800,000. He falsely claimed he was due a refund of $465,734.
Officials said Blanchett had not made enough wages to have any income tax withheld. He knew he was not entitled to a tax refund in 2016, 2017, or 2018.
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