Kansas City tax preparer pleads guilty to making false statements to a financial institution and preparing fraudulent tax returns

Date: September 4, 2025

Contact: [email protected]

Kansas City, MO - A Kansas City, Mo., woman pleaded guilty in federal court today to taking part in two separate fraudulent schemes.

Bianca Cobbins pleaded guilty to a seven-count Information charging two counts of making a false statement to a financial institution and five counts of aiding in the preparation of a false tax return.

False Statements to a Financial Institution

Cobbins admitted that, in December 2019, she obtained personal information belonging to a victim, including the victim's legal name, date of birth, Social Security number, address, and credit score. Utilizing this information, Cobbins obtained a fraudulent driver's license containing the victim's personal information and a photograph of another individual, Quanisha Capelton. Cobbins and Capelton then utilized the fraudulent driver's license to apply for a checking account at a local financial institution.

After opening the checking account, Cobbins manufactured two fraudulent paystubs. The paystubs falsely indicated that the above-mentioned victim worked for a healthcare company in Kansas City, Mo., and that the victim's paychecks were directly deposited into the fraudulently opened checking account. Cobbins and Capelton used the fraudulent paystubs to apply for a consumer loan at the above-mentioned local financial institution.

As part of her plea agreement, Cobbins admitted that the procurement and use of the victim's personal information to commit fraud resulted in an intended loss of at least $36,128.32.

Quanisha Capelton was previously charged, convicted, and sentenced to the Bureau of Prisons for her use of the victim's personal information.

Aiding in the Preparation of False Tax Returns

Cobbins, a professional tax preparer, further admitted that for tax years 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023, she knowingly prepared false federal tax returns aimed at fraudulently inflating her clients' refunds. In many instances, Cobbins attached fraudulent Schedule C forms to her clients' returns. The fraudulent Schedule C forms falsely claimed business profits and/or losses in an effort to ensure her clients received the maximum amount of Earned Income Credit.

As part of her plea agreement, Cobbins admitted to preparing at least 55 false federal tax returns, resulting in an actual loss of at least $312,656.00.

Under federal statutes, Cobbins is subject to a sentence of up to 30 years in federal prison without parole for each count of making a false statement to a financial institution and is subject to a sentence of up to 3 years in federal prison without parole for each count of aiding in the preparation of false tax returns. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of Cobbins will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicholas P. Heberle. It was investigated by IRS-CI, the United States Secret Service, and the Lee's Summit, Mo., Police Department.

IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) is the law enforcement arm of the IRS, responsible for conducting financial crime investigations, including tax fraud, narcotics trafficking, money laundering, public corruption, healthcare fraud, identity theft and more. IRS-CI special agents are the only federal law enforcement agents with investigative jurisdiction over violations of the Internal Revenue Code, obtaining a 90% federal conviction rate. The agency has 19 field offices located across the U.S. and 14 attaché posts abroad.