Palestine Man Sentenced for Tax Fraud/Identity Theft Scheme

TYLER — A 39-year-old Palestine man has been sentenced in Tyler to 8 1/2 years in federal prison for a tax fraud/identity theft scheme. Jefferson Kincade pleaded guilty last Aug. 23 to fraudulent or false statements in a tax return, theft or conversion of money, and aggravated identity theft. Kincade also agreed to a cash forfeiture of $110,919.54.

According to information presented in court, Kincade prepared tax returns for individuals at a tax preparation business, EZ Tax, in Palestine, and devised a scheme to prepare false tax returns, steal clients’ refunds, and use the clients’ and other individuals’ identities to accomplish the theft. Kincade made false statements and representations in the tax returns that he submitted in order to increase the amount of tax refunds to which the taxpayer would be entitled. Kincade was able to intercept the government tax refunds for his own benefit by printing the refund checks, not giving them to his clients, and then cashing them with the assistance of two individuals who were not associated with EZ Tax.