United States of America v. Manoach Chayaud

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania criminal defense lawyer represented the Defendant charged with conspiracy to defraud the I.R.S. in violation of 19 U.S.C. 371.

Reported by Kent Morlan

Manoach Chayaud, age 43, of Carmel, Indiana, recruited two individuals to assist him in a scheme to file false tax returns on behalf of clients of his tax preparation business, setting up an office in Indiana, where he lived, and an office in Philadelphia, where the two co-conspirators lived.

Chayaud taught the two co-conspirators how to prepare tax returns to increase client refunds by, among other things, filing false Schedules C claiming large losses for businesses that the client did not have, fraudulently claiming education credits, and fraudulently claiming Schedule A deductions.

As a result, the defendant and his co-conspirators were able to increase the refunds for their clients and charge additional tax preparation fees. Chayaud and one of the co-conspirators split the proceeds of the business; the other co-conspirator was paid a percentage of the fees the business charged.

The Defendant was found guilty and faces a maximum possible term of five years in prison, a fine, or both.