A Springfield, Illinois, woman was sentenced on May 6 in federal court for one count of wire fraud and one count of making false, fictitious, or fraudulent claims.
Tina Louise Yager, age 36, received a sentence of 38 months in prison with the Bureau of Prisons. She will also serve three years of supervised release after her incarceration. Yager was ordered to pay $14,447 in restitution to the Internal Revenue Service and $2,403 to the Missouri Department of Revenue, totaling $16,850.
According to court records, Yager worked as a tax preparer at Jackson-Hewitt Tax Service in Republic, Missouri. While employed there, she used clients’ personal financial information without their knowledge or approval to prepare and submit fraudulent income tax returns. The refunds from these returns were then directed into accounts controlled by Yager rather than the rightful taxpayers.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Patrick Carney following an investigation by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigations and the Missouri Department of Revenue.
The U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Missouri handles federal prosecutions and civil litigation across 66 counties in western Missouri and collaborates with federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement partners. The office has locations in Kansas City, Jefferson City and Springfield; it is affiliated with the U.S. Department of Justice and supports community outreach programs aimed at addressing issues like violent crime and drug trafficking according to the official website.
