MACON, Ga. — Jessica Crawford, a 34-year-old tax preparer from Athens, Georgia, has been sentenced to eight years in federal prison for orchestrating a $3.5 million tax fraud scheme involving fraudulent unemployment claims and inflated tax credits.
U.S. District Judge Tilman E. “Tripp” Self III handed down the 96-month sentence on Thursday, which also includes five years of supervised release. Crawford pleaded guilty in November 2024 to one count of wire fraud and one count of aiding in the preparation of false tax returns. She will not be eligible for parole under federal law.
Crawford operated the scheme through her business, Crawford Tax Services, by submitting Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) applications for clients using false or fabricated business information. In exchange, she kept a portion of the illegally obtained benefits.
According to court documents, investigators first discovered her involvement through text messages linked to a multi-state fraud probe by the FBI. The case escalated when an undercover IRS agent met Crawford in April 2022, casually mentioning that he mowed his aunt’s lawn. Crawford falsely turned that statement into a fake landscaping business, fabricating a $19,373 loss and claiming a $12,359 refund on a falsified return. The return also included fraudulent credits such as the Earned Income Tax Credit, Child Tax Credit, and Qualified Business Income Deduction.
A statistical review by the IRS revealed that of the 1,261 returns Crawford filed in 2020 and 2021, over $3 million involved fraudulent claims, including for sick leave, family leave, and dependent care credits.
“Jessica Crawford used her position as a tax preparer to defraud the U.S. government through a CARES Act program intended for those unemployed because of the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Lisa Fontanette, Assistant Special Agent in Charge of IRS Criminal Investigation in Atlanta.
“Federal law enforcement uncovered a large-scale tax return scheme during the pandemic that was costing taxpayers while benefiting fraudsters,” said Acting U.S. Attorney C. Shanelle Booker.
The case was investigated by the FBI Atlanta and IRS Criminal Investigation and prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Georgia.
