11 charged in alleged ID theft, tax scheme in NY

By TOM HAYS

posted: 151 DAYS 6 HOURS AGO

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NEW YORK -Federal authorities have charged 11 people with stealing the names and Social Security number of people living in Puerto Rico and using the information to try to collect millions of dollars in tax refunds.

Eight of those charged were arrested in New York and Pennsylvania on Tuesday. One already was in custody, and two are fugitives, authorities said.

An indictment unsealed in federal court in Manhattan alleges that since 2006 the defendants filed fraudulent federal and New York state tax returns seeking more than $18 million in refunds.

Puerto Rico residents are not required to file tax returns unless they earn income outside the commonwealth. Prosecutors say the defendants hoped that by using personal information from people living in Puerto Rico they would reduce the risk that tax agencies would discover duplicative returns.

Among the New York suspects, Luis Eduardo Peguero was charged with helping get electronic codes that allowed the group to file returns over the Internet. Another, Cleopatra Rodriguez, was accused of renting an apartment where the refund checks could be mailed.

Peguero, Rodriquez and the other six defendants arrested Tuesday pleaded not guilty and were released on bond, authorities said. Peguero's lawyer declined to comment; there was no immediate response to messages left with other defense attorneys.

Last month, a man was sentenced to 57 months in a similar scheme to cash more than $2 million in fraudulent tax refund checks sent to phony addresses near his Manhattan home. He admitted bribing a letter carrier to steal any U.S. Treasury Department checks that turned up on her route.

The carrier, who also has pleaded guilty, is awaiting sentencing.

2009-07-01 10:01:09