Justice Department Seeks to Shut Down Florida-Based Return Preparer

Note: View complaint here.

The United States filed a complaint today in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida seeking to enjoin a Florida-based return preparer, Glicerio D. Mirambel, from preparing federal income tax returns for others.

The complaint alleges that Mirambel prepares federal income tax returns that underreport the tax his customers owe and claim inflated refunds. Specifically, the complaint alleges that Mirambel attaches Schedules C for fictitious businesses to his customers' return and claims fabricated business expenses to reduce his customers' taxable income and claim credits to which they are not entitled. The complaint also alleges that the IRS has assessed tax return preparer penalties against Mirambel, but the penalties have not deterred his abusive conduct.

According to the complaint, the IRS estimates a tax loss of more than $16 million since 2023 from returns prepared by Mirambel.

Deputy Assistant Attorney General Joshua Wu of the Civil Division's Tax Litigation Branch made the announcement.

Taxpayers seeking a return preparer should remain vigilant against unscrupulous tax preparers. The IRS has information on its websiteLinks to other government and non-government sites will typically appear with the "external link" icon to indicate that you are leaving the Department of Justice website when you click the link. for choosing a tax return preparer and has launched a free directoryLinks to other government and non-government sites will typically appear with the "external link" icon to indicate that you are leaving the Department of Justice website when you click the link. of federal tax preparers. The IRS also offers 10 tipsLinks to other government and non-government sites will typically appear with the "external link" icon to indicate that you are leaving the Department of Justice website when you click the link. to avoid tax season fraud and ways to safeguard their personal information.

In the past decade, the Department of Justice Tax Division has obtained injunctions against hundreds of unscrupulous tax preparers. Information about these cases is available on the Justice Department's website. An alphabetical listing of persons enjoined from preparing returns and promoting tax schemes can be found on this page. If you believe that one of the enjoined persons or businesses may be violating an injunction, please contact the Tax Division with details.