Northern District of Alabama

BIRMINGHAM -- A federal jury on Thursday convicted a Birmingham tax-preparer for aiding and abetting the filing of false income tax returns, announced U.S. Attorney Joyce White Vance and IRS Criminal Investigation Division Acting Special Agent in Charge Veronica Hyman-Pillot.

The jury convicted SALLY ELIZABETH WYNN, 64, on three counts of aiding and abetting the filing of a false return following a three-day trial before U.S. District Judge R. David Proctor. Wynn was a 30-year professional tax-preparer and owner of Centerpoint Financial Services.

“While most preparers provide excellent service to their clients, a few dishonest return preparers file false tax returns and give the client a false sense of security,” Hyman-Pillot said. “IRS does not endorse or recommend tax preparers, but we do offer guidelines to help the public choose a reliable tax professional. These guidelines are available on the IRS website,” she said. “Taxpayers should choose carefully when hiring a tax preparer. As the old saying goes, ‘If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.’”

According to evidence at trial, Wynn helped one of her clients hide income from the Internal Revenue Service for the 2005, 2006, and 2007 tax years. The evidence showed that Wynn provided tax-preparation and bookkeeping services to Gonzalez Construction Incorporated and its owner, Jose Gonzalez. As a result, Wynn knew that Gonzalez received at least $340,000 in personal income during each of the years in question. Nevertheless, she prepared tax returns for him that claimed between $55,000 and $66,000 in total income during each of the three years.

Gonzalez still faces criminal charges for his role in these crimes.

Wynn is scheduled for sentencing May 8.

Wynn could face a maximum sentence of three years in prison on each of the three counts of aiding and abetting the filing of a false tax return.

The IRS investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Melissa K. Atwood and Robin B. Mark prosecuted the case.

HUNTSVILLE – A federal jury today convicted a U.S. Army officer for making false statements to a department of the United States and for stealing government property, announced U.S. Attorney Joyce White Vance and John F. Khin, special agent in charge, Defense Criminal Investigative Service, U.S. Department of Defense.

The jury convicted Lt. Col. James O. McLinnaham, 45, who is stationed at Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, after a three-day trial before U.S. District Judge Abdul K. Kallon. The jury found McLinnaham guilty of three counts of making false statements on official, confidential disclosure forms; one count of making false statements in a questionnaire for national security clearance; and three counts of making false statements in work orders submitted to the Army print shop.

Evidence at trial showed the defendant had certified that the financial disclosure forms were true when he had failed to disclose his position with an outside business, and to having received wages and other payments from that business. The evidence showed that the defendant had certified that his questionnaire for national security clearance was true when he had failed to disclose his association with the same business, a prior marriage, and a prior misdemeanor arrest. The defendant was required to fill out all these forms as part of his official duties with the U.S. Army.

False statements on the work orders related to McLinnaham certifying that posters printed and mounted by the Army print shop were for official purposes when they were actually for his outside business. The theft of government property charge related to the same posters, and to the defendant obtaining a conference table from Redstone Arsenal for which his business received a $400 credit toward the purchase of another conference table from a local furniture store.

“The citizens are entitled to expect honesty and integrity from all government employees, including military personnel,” Vance said. “This case is important because it demonstrates our commitment to investigating and prosecuting those who do not live up to the trust that our citizens have placed in them,” she said.

The defendant faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine for the false statement charges.  He also faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for the theft charge.

McLinnaham is tentatively scheduled for sentencing in April.

The case was investigated by the Defense Criminal Investigative Service, with assistance from the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command, and the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Russell E. Penfield and Terence M. O’Rourke prosecuted the case.

BIRMINGHAM – Federal prosecutors have charged a Birmingham real estate lawyer with wire fraud in connection with a nearly $1 million mortgage fraud scheme, announced U.S. Attorney Joyce White Vance.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office charged KELVIN LEONARD DAVIS, 41, with four counts of wire fraud for knowingly submitting false mortgage documents and statements to various lenders in order to obtain approval for mortgage loans. At the time of the fraudulent transactions, from October 2007 to January 2012, Davis served as the closing attorney on each of the fraudulent loan transactions.

Davis has agreed to plead guilty to the charges and to forfeit $269,335 to the government as proceeds of the illegal activity.

The charges against Davis were filed in October. Documents in the case were unsealed last week in U.S. District Court.

According to the four-count information charging Davis, and his plea agreement with the government, he carried out his fraud as follows:

Davis submitted false statements with loan documents in order to obtain approval for mortgage loans that would, otherwise, not have been approved. In many instances, Davis, while serving as closing attorney, would use his trust account to provide money to the borrower when a mortgage loan was closing. Davis would recover the money by subtracting the amount he provided from the proceeds he issued to the seller. Davis also would assess the seller a fee, ranging from $1,000 to $6,000, and make checks for the fee payable to Peaceful Valley Homes, a corporation he had formed. Total losses to the various lenders as a result of Davis’ fraud were nearly $1 million.

The maximum sentence for each count is 20 years in prison and a $1 million fine.

The FBI and the Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Inspector General, investigated the case, which Assistant U.S. Attorney Robin Mark is prosecuting.