Press Release
JUPITER RESIDENT SENTENCED FOR TAX FRAUD AND MISUSE OF A SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER
August 6, 2007
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
R. Alexander Acosta, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Michael Yasofsky Jr., Special in Charge, Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Criminal Investigation Division, Roland H. Maye, Special Agent in Charge, Social Security Administration, Office of Inspector General, and Jonathan I. Solomon, Special Agent in charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Miami Field Division (FBI), announce that late on Friday, August 3rd, 2007, United States District Court Judge Daniel T. K. Hurley, in West Palm Beach, sentenced defendant Ernest Earl Erbe, Jr., a/k/a Richard Allen Dixon, of Jupiter, Florida, to thirteen (13) months imprisonment followed by three (3) years of supervised release and ordered to pay restitution to the IRS of $122,284.55. On April 7th, 2007, Erbe pleaded guilty to filing a false individual income tax return with the IRS, for tax year 2003, in violation of Title 26, U.S.C., Section 7206(1), and to misusing a Social Security account number, in violation of Title 42, United States Code, Section 408(a)(7)(A). Erbe was ordered to surrender himself to the U.S. Marshal in the District of Maryland on or before August 31, 2007 at noon.
Through an Information, the United States Attorney charged that Erbe intentionally failed to report tax due and owing in the amount of approximately $57,912, on his 2003 individual income tax return. According to statements made in court, Erbe was the 100% owner of Fuller Asset Management (Fuller), a closely held company that purchased HUD real estate properties, rehabilitated them, and resold them. During 2003, Fuller sold a real estate property in Kansas and then disbursed approximately $290,000 in taxable income to Erbe. On or about October 7, 2005, Erbe filed a 2003 individual federal tax return and did not report the $290,000 of taxable income received from Fuller.
The defendant was further charged with intentionally misusing a social security account number, which he fraudulently obtained under the name of "Richard Allen Dixon." Erbe filed his 2003 individual income tax return under the name "Richard Dixon."
Mr. Acosta commended the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division, the Social Security Administration, Office of Inspector General, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation for their investigative efforts in this case, and thanked the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office and the Jupiter Police Department for their cooperation in this matter. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Bruce E. Reinhart.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.
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