N.J. accountant filed 177 false tax returns on behalf of clients, feds say

A Bergen County woman was sentenced to three years in prison and must pay back over $1 million after admitting to filing 177 false tax returns on behalf of clients, officials with the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.

Joshlyn Raye, 49, of Elmwood Park previously pleaded guilty to aiding and assisting in preparing false tax returns, tax evasion and filing a false declaration regarding a quarterly employment statement on behalf of her company.

Between March 2010 and September 2023, Raye knowingly filed a dozens of false tax returns on behalf of herself, her clients and her business, officials said.

Raye was accused of using false and inflated figures, including expenses and itemized deductions, to generate larger tax refunds, officials said.

Raye filed false tax returns on behalf of herself three times over the more than a dozen years she filed false tax documents between 2010 and 2013.

She also filed 177 false returns on behalf of her clients and three false quarterly employment returns on behalf of her tax preparation business, officials said.

In addition to her prison sentence, Raye must serve three years of supervised release and pay just over $1.1 million in restitution, officials said.

An attorney for Raye did not immediately return a request for comment.