Page 2 - Florida Sentinel 12-6-16 Online Edition

Features
Couple Convicted Of Tax Fraud Gets 6 Years, Must Repay $1.6 Million
MS. JESSICA IROBOSA OMOWELE
A married Tampa couple has been sentenced to federal prison for their role in filing fraudulent federal income tax returns. They pleaded guilty September 7, 2016. A c - cording to court documents, Ms. Jessica Irobosa Omowele, 30, and her hus- band, Kevin Bernard Jones, 31, both of Tampa, were sentenced to 6 years and 3 months in federal prison. Last week, U. S. District Judge Virginia M. Her- nandez Covington also or- dered them to repay, nearly $1.6 million to the Internal Revenue Service.
According to court docu- ments, beginning in 2011 through 2015, Ms. Omowele and Jones, along with others, agreed and conspired to elec- tronically file fraudulent tax re- turns. They used the personal information of people who did not know they were victims of identity theft. Some of the peo- ple whose information was used were also deceased.
Officials said many of the
KEVIN BERNARD JONES
refund requests were filed from the couple’s home and the refunds were directed to be deposited onto debit cards. The cards were in the names of those involved in the conspir- acy and sent to the addresses associated with the conspira- tors.
After obtaining the money, Ms. Omowele and Jones used the cards at retail stores, ATM machines, and made on- line purchases.
The investigation also re- vealed that the couple used in- formation belonging to their victims to obtain utility service at their home and to apply for student loans.
Investigators said the In- ternal Revenue Service has de- termined that the personal information of more than 1,500 people was used to file the false claims. They at- tempted to obtain $9,424,989,41, but were not successful. However, investiga- tors said they were able to trace $1,586,245.39 back to the couple.
Protesters Stood Up For Their Belief
These protesters are: Gail Rodgers, Brenda Williams, Harriette Bogan, Lillian Hodgson and Pavonne Scott.
STATE REPRESENTATIVE SEAN SHAW
Protesters gather in Ybor City to join the ‘Fight For $15.’
BY GWEN HAYES Sentinel Editor
Protesters across the coun- try took to the streets on Tues- day, November 29, 2016 to fight for a minimum wage of $15 an hour and the opportu- nity to become members of unions. At the end of the day, 23 of the protesters were ar-
rested for blocking the road- way.
In Tampa, a group of pro- testers started the day at Mac- Donald’s Restaurant on Hillsborough Ave., traveled to St. Petersburg to unite with a group of protesters and re- turned to Centennial Park in Ybor City in the afternoon to continue the protest.
Three of the protesters spoke with the Sentinel before joining the protesters in St. Pete.
One of the organizers of the protest, Bleu Rainer, 26, has worked for Chipotle for 9 years. “We need to bring awareness to the high powered individuals that we can’t live off these wages,” Rainer said in a phone interview. Eugene Harris was also one of the or- ganizers.
Ms. Gail Rodgers, who has been with the Ybor Mc- Donald’s for nearly 2 years, was among those arrested. “We stood up for what we be- lieved was right,” she said after the protest. “We will continue the fight to get our rightful wages.”
Ms. Rodgers, 56, said this was her first time being arrested and sitting in the back of a paddy wagon, but she was not ashamed of what she had done. “I know I did it for a worthy cause,” she said in the phone interview.
“I may not live to see it, but it will benefit someone else. We know that Florida is a stubborn state, but our plan is to move forward.”
Ms. Phyllis Lewis, 61, who is employed by KFC, joined the marchers. She, too, was among those arrested. She supported the protest march because of the need for better wages.
According to Ms. Rodgers, the arrest process took about 20 minutes. A court date has been set for De- cember 14th. (Photos by BRUNSON)
PAGE 2 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY TUESDAY, DECEMBER 6, 2016