It shouldn’t come as a surprise that it’s a crime to cheat your taxes. However, this fact does not stop everyone from committing this act. The IRS reported that there were a total of 2,886 criminal IRS investigations in 2018.
Auditors are trained to look for tax fraud, which is considered the willful act done with the intent to defraud the IRS. Unfortunately, the IRS may look for leads in places where honest mistakes were made.
Negligence vs. Tax Fraud
While auditors are certainly not detectives, they do look for common types of wrongdoings that may point to tax fraud, called “badges of fraud.” Types of activity that may cause suspicion for auditors include:
Businesses having two sets of books
Businesses having no records at all
False receipts
Checks altered to increase deductions
Sometimes, the line between cheating on taxes and negligently filing taxes is not always clear, even to the IRS and courts. Unfortunately, this means that the IRS may begin to investigate honest or careless mistakes that they believe to be criminal activity.
Get a Former Prosecutor on Your Side
If you’ve been charged with tax fraud, you need legal representation immediately to ensure that your rights are protected. Whether you are guilty or innocent does not matter. If you’re being charged, the prosecutors believe they have enough evidence against you to find you guilty in federal court.
Our attorneys at Foley Griffin are former prosecutors, which means that it gives our team -- and our clients -- an advantage in the court. Our team is better equipped to predict how the other side will go about presenting the evidence of your case. We can then come prepared with a hard-hitting and effective defense so that you can walk away with the best possible outcome.
Contact Foley Griffin at (888) 966-8480 for seasoned criminal defense in your corner.