NEVADA FEDERAL COURT CONVICTS FORMER TAX PREPARER OF CRIMINAL CONTEMPT OF COURT

Las Vegas Man Prepared Tax Return and Represented Customers Before the IRS In Violation of Court's 2004 Injunction Order

WASHINGTON - A federal court in Nevada has convicted a former Las Vegas tax preparer, Jeffrey Dean Hubacek, of criminal contempt of court, the Justice Department announced today. U.S. District Judge James C. Mahan announced the verdict at the conclusion of a one-day bench trial and sentenced Hubacek to four months in prison.

The contempt finding resulted from Hubacek’s violations of an injunction entered against him by Judge Mahan in June 2004. The injunction permanently barred him from preparing tax returns for others and from representing customers before the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Evidence at the contempt trial showed that Hubacek prepared one return for a customer and represented a number of customers before the IRS, all after the injunction had been entered.

“Today’s conviction shows that there are serious consequences to violating court injunction orders,” said Nathan J. Hochman, Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Tax Division. “The Justice Department is committed to prosecuting tax preparers and tax-fraud promoters who violate court injunctions.”

Assistant Attorney General Hochman thanked Michael Pahl, the Justice Department trial attorney who tried the case.

The Justice Department has convicted other tax preparers for similar violations. For example, in August 2008, the Justice Department obtained a contempt conviction against Minnesota tax preparer Nash Sonibare, who is awaiting sentencing. Also, earlier this year a federal court sentenced a Michigan tax preparer and tax-fraud promoter, Robert Mosher, to 51 months in prison following his second contempt conviction for violating an injunction.

More information about this case and the Justice Department's Tax Division is available at http://www.usdoj.gov/tax.

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