Two Fairbanks residents were arrested Tuesday for filing nearly 100 false tax returns claiming $214,560 in refunds, according to the U.S. District Attorney's Office.
Last week, a federal grand jury indicted Earl Worthy and Tammy Jean Jackson, both 39, on charges of filing false income tax returns, mail fraud and aggravated identity theft.
According to the charges, Worthy and Jackson filed 95 false tax returns between May 2009 and September 2012. The returns claimed wages based on fake W-2 forms, each claiming thousands of dollars in refunds, the charges say.
Prosecutors said that many of the returns were filed for inmates at correctional facilities. Refunds went directly into the defendants' bank accounts, but in some cases were mailed to a Fairbanks Correctional Center address.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven Skrocki said that if convicted the defendants face 20-year prison terms and $250,000 fines.
Acting U.S. Attorney Kevin Feldis noted that this case is consistent with similar schemes carried out in Alaska and other states.