Boca Raton Resident Convicted of Filing False Tax Returns, Access Device Fraud, and Aggravated Identity Theft

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida; Assistant Attorney General Kathryn Keneally of the Justice Department’s Tax Division; Michael J. DePalma, Acting Special Agent in Charge; Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI); and Michael B. Steinbach, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, announce that Harvey Zitron, of Boca Raton, was convicted by a federal grand jury on all ten counts charged in the indictment.

According to the indictment, Zitron was charged with filing fraudulent IRS United States Individual Income Tax Returns, Forms 1040, for 2004 and 2005 (counts one and two), and Amended Individual Income Tax Returns, Forms 1040X for 2003, 2004, and 2005 (counts three through five), all in violation of Title 26, United States Code, Section 7206(1). In addition, he was charged with three counts of access device fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1029(a)(2) (counts six, eight, and 10), and two counts of aggravated identity theft, in violation of Title 18 United States Code, Section 1028A(a)(1) (counts seven and nine). The trial was held before the Honorable Robert N. Scola, U.S. District Court Judge. Sentencing is set for October 8, 2013.

According to the evidence presented at trial, Zitron used companies to write checks to friends or acquaintances who cashed the checks and returned the cash to Zitron. Zitron then failed to declare this income on his tax returns. He also opened credit card accounts in the names of his son and ex-wife and charged more than $1,000 in a single year on those accounts without their authorization or knowledge.

Zitron faces a maximum sentence of three years for each count of tax fraud, 10 years for each count of access device fraud, and two consecutive years for each count of aggravated identity theft.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of the IRS-CI and the FBI. This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Harry Wallace and Department of Justice Tax Division Attorney Kevin J. Lombardi.