Justice Department Seeks to Shut Down Las Vegas Tax Return Preparers Filing False and Fraudulent Tax Returns for Customers

The Justice Department filed two civil complaints today in the U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada against Las Vegas tax return preparers and their companies. The complaints seek to enjoin these tax return preparers and their companies from preparing and filing federal income tax returns for others.

The complaints allege that Michael Moreno and his company, Awesome Tax LLC, and Carlos Yero and his company, Travel All The World, prepared and filed thousands of federal income tax returns for customers since at least 2018. Allegedly, Moreno and Yero and their companies regularly filed returns with the IRS that fraudulently overstated the amount of refund due while simultaneously telling their customers that they would receive a smaller refund. Moreno and Yero would then allegedly collect as “bank fees” the substantial difference between these amounts. The complaints allege that the amount collected as “bank fees” ranges between $300 and $800 per return.

The complaints allege that Moreno and Yero prepared, and their companies filed, tax returns with false tax credits, fabricated business income and expenses on Form 1040 Schedule C and improper itemized deductions on Form 1040 Schedule A to improperly understate their customers’ tax liabilities and to inflate refunds. Moreno and Awesome Tax have allegedly caused a tax loss of approximately $2.74 million in 2018 and 2019, while Yero and Travel All The World allegedly caused a tax loss of $2.64 million in 2019 alone.

Deputy Assistant Attorney General David A. Hubbert of the Justice Department’s Tax Division made the announcement.

Attorneys from the Justice Department’s Tax Division are handling the case.

Taxpayers seeking a return preparer should remain vigilant against unscrupulous tax preparers. The IRS has information on its website for choosing a tax return preparer and has launched a free directory of federal tax preparers. The IRS also offers 10 tips to avoid tax season fraud and ways to safeguard their personal information.

In the past decade, the Justice Department’s Tax Division has obtained injunctions against hundreds of unscrupulous tax preparers. Information about these cases is available on the Justice Department’s website. An alphabetical listing of persons enjoined from preparing returns and promoting tax schemes can be found on this page. If you believe that one of the enjoined persons or businesses may be violating an injunction, please contact the Tax Division with details.