Charlotte man indicted for helping file $4.7M worth of false tax returns

CHARLOTTE — A 58-year-old man from Charlotte is facing federal criminal charges after he allegedly helped prepare false tax returns that resulted in nearly $5 million of inflated tax refunds.

According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte, Tijan Mboob was indicted on 20 criminal charges in connection with the scheme, which lasted more than five years.

Federal investigators say Mboob “prepared or caused to be prepared hundreds of fraudulent tax returns that were submitted to the IRS.”

Mboob is being called a “ghost preparer” who didn’t identify himself as a tax preparer on the returns, despite charging clients for tax services.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office says Mboob prepared income tax returns that included “fabricated and fraudulent items,” along with false claims for tax credits and false itemized deductions. In total, he reduced his clients’ tax liabilities and inflated their refunds by more than $4.7 million.

When the IRS questioned clients about some of the items on the tax returns, Mboob refused to assist the clients, according to the feds.

Mboob was arrested and released on bond. If he’s found guilty, he could face up to three years in prison and a $250,000 fine for each count.

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