NEW BEDFORD, MA — Valentina Martinez, 50, of New Bedford, was sentenced on March 7, 2025, for stealing federal funds by filing false tax returns to obtain fraudulent refunds from the IRS. U.S. District Judge Patti B. Saris sentenced Martinez to 12 months of supervised release under home confinement, with electronic monitoring for the first six months.
In addition to her sentence, Martinez was ordered to pay $41,823 in restitution to the IRS.
Martinez, who worked for a national tax return preparation service, fraudulently added business deductions to clients’ tax returns without their knowledge. She then electronically filed the false returns, causing fraudulent refunds to be deposited onto debit cards controlled by her.
Martinez used the stolen funds for personal expenses, including ATM withdrawals and a Florida vacation. The fraud was uncovered after a client reported a missing refund, which led to Martinez’s termination from her position.
By the time of her termination, Martinez had filed at least 12 fraudulent returns, resulting in losses of more than $40,000 to the IRS. She pleaded guilty in December 2024 to five counts of theft of government money.
Martinez’s prosecution is part of the Stolen Identity Refund Fraud (SIRF) program, an initiative by the IRS aimed at identifying tax preparers involved in fraudulent schemes using stolen identities.
Martinez will serve her home confinement sentence while being monitored electronically. Her restitution payment to the IRS is part of the efforts to recover some of the stolen funds.
