BERGEN COUNTY, NJ — Joshlyn Raye, 49, a tax preparer from Elmwood Park, New Jersey, has been sentenced to 36 months in federal prison for tax evasion and assisting in the preparation of nearly 180 fraudulent tax returns. The sentence was handed down by U.S. District Judge Esther Salas in Newark federal court.
Raye pled guilty to three felony counts: aiding and assisting in the preparation of a false and fraudulent tax return, tax evasion, and filing a false declaration under penalty of perjury for a quarterly employment tax return. In addition to the prison sentence, she was also ordered to serve three years of supervised release and pay restitution totaling $1,109,214.10.
Raye operated JB Tax Services, a tax preparation business based in Hackensack, from March 2010 through September 2023. During this period, she prepared 177 false tax returns for clients, submitting inflated deductions and fabricated expenses to secure larger tax refunds than what was legally entitled. In doing so, Raye caused significant financial harm to both the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the clients involved.
Furthermore, Raye evaded paying her own personal income taxes for several years, and falsified three quarterly employment tax returns for her business to underreport tax obligations owed to the IRS.
The investigation was led by the IRS Criminal Investigation Division and the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance’s Office of Internal Affairs. U.S. Attorney Alina Habba credited their efforts, with the investigation overseen by Special Agent in Charge Jenifer Piovesan and Director Brian Hickey.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Benjamin Levin, who serves as the Chief of the Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF)/Narcotics Unit in Newark.
