A woman in Philadelphia stands accused of failing to report the unemployment compensation she received for five years on her tax return. What's worse, she was a full-time IRS employee when this happened.
Philly. com reports that 51-year-old Lora Lewis took tax credits for income and education, as well as first-time homebuyers' credit that she wasn't eligible for. She also allegedly claimed fake deductions (like one for a car she never bought) in a haphazard attempt to lower her amount of taxable income.
According to U.S. Attorney's Office for Eastern Pennsylvania, Lewis schemed a total of $39,000 out of the government between 2007 and 2011.
Lewis faces a charge for filing a false income tax return. Should she be convicted, she could spend a maximum of three years behind bars, in addition to having to pay the IRS—her employer—restitution and a fine of up to $250,000.
You'd think someone who worked for the IRS would know better than to try and defraud the IRS, but sense obviously isn't common.
[via Philly.com]