PANAMA CITY — Four people have been indicted on federal charges of tax fraud and identity theft, according to a U.S. Department of Justice news release.
A federal grand jury indictment, unsealed Monday, charged Jermaine Winters, 38, of Coleman; Senora Cotton, 24, of Chipley; Rosetta Presley, 22, of Chipley; and Fontella Keith, 47, of Chipley; with conspiracy, wire fraud and identity theft in connection with the electronic filing of false federal income tax returns.
The indictment alleged that, between July 2011 and July 2012, the four defendants used the stolen identities of assisted-living facility residents, clinical laboratory patients, and others, in an attempt to steal more than $118,000 from the U.S. Treasury, through the electronic filing of fraudulent tax returns.
Keith is alleged to have stolen the personal identifying information of patients at the Dogwood Inn, an assisted-living facility in Bonifay, where he worked. The indictment alleged that Keith gave this information to Winters, Cotton and Presley, who then filed the fraudulent tax returns. The defendants also are alleged to have used the personal identifying information of patients from Sun Laboratory Services, a clinical laboratory in the Tampa-area, to file additional fraudulent tax returns. The defendants allegedly caused the U.S. Treasury to pay fraudulent income tax refunds by loading refunds onto prepaid debit cards mailed by various financial institutions to addresses in the Northern District of Florida.
The arraignment for Cotton and Keith was Monday before Magistrate Judge Larry A. Bodiford at the U.S. Courthouse. An arraignment has not been scheduled for Winters or Presley.