CLEVELAND – A federal court jury in Cleveland has convicted a traveling minister from Arkansas in a tax refund scam that prosecutors say totaled nearly $5 million.
Fifty-eight-year-old Allen Miles of Little Rock, Arkansas, was convicted Tuesday on conspiracy, wire fraud and identity theft charges.
Prosecutors say a scheme by Miles and a co-defendant resulted in more than 2,700 fraudulent tax returns being filed on behalf of church members in Ohio and other states.
Prosecutors say Miles obtained personal information after claiming he'd help church members obtain government stimulus funds.
The government says a co-defendant used the data to file returns with false tax credit claims. They say Miles and the co-defendant took fees from each tax refund while congregants received the balance.
Miles' attorneys couldn't immediately be reached for comment.
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