A Cobb County man was convicted of stealing the identities of thousands of people to file federal tax returns claiming over $5 million in bogus refunds, the U.S. Attorney's Office said today.
Mauricio Warner, 38, of Smyrna, was convicted of 16 counts of wire fraud, 16 counts of aggravated identity theft, 16 counts of filing false claims, and two counts of money laundering, U.S. Attorney Sally Quillian Yates said. Warner was taken into custody after the verdict and is scheduled for sentencing at 2 p.m. on June 25.
"This verdict represents yet another conviction in a series of recent cases involving identity thieves who use the personal information of unsuspecting victims to file bogus tax returns and steal millions of dollars from the U.S. Treasury," Yates said in an emailed statement. "We will continue to do all we can to stop these schemes and protect our citizens identities from theft."
From January 2011 to April 2012, Warner filed more than 5,000 false tax returns using the names and Social Security numbers of unsuspecting victims, according to prosecutors. Victims gave Warner their names and Social Security numbers believing they were applying for an "Obama stimulus payment" or "Free government money," Yates' office said.
Warner then used the victims' identities to file phony tax forms and requested the IRS deposit the refunds into his accounts, according to testimony and evidence presented in court. The U.S. has seized seven of Warner's bank accounts containing $4,185,455.31 in funds acquired as part of the scheme, Yates said.
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