Six Defendants Charged with Conspiring to Defraud the IRS and Other Fraud Offenses

Three defendants were arrested this week in Hawaii on conspiracy to defraud the IRS and other fraud charges. Marciaminajuanequita Dumlao, Elvah Miranda, and Daniel Miranda were arrested and made their initial appearances before U.S. Magistrate Judge Wes Reber Porter of the U.S. District Court for the District of Hawaii. A federal grand jury in Honolulu, Hawaii, returned a 45-count superseding indictment on September 9, 2021, charging Rosemarie Lastimado-Dradi, Dumlao, Elvah Miranda, Daniel Miranda, Lazerrick Lawrence, and Danitta Ross Morton with conspiring to defraud the United States. Additionally, Lastimado-Dradi was charged with aiding and assisting in the preparation of a false tax return, and Daniel and Elvah Miranda and Dumlao were charged with filing false tax returns and with making false statements under oath in a bankruptcy proceeding. The superseding indictment also charged Lastimado-Dradi, Dumlao, and Elvah Miranda with money laundering.

According to the superseding indictment, from at least January 2015 through September 2018, the defendants conspired to defraud the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). As part of the tax fraud scheme, the conspirators allegedly filed fraudulent individual tax returns and other tax documents that reported false withholdings from mortgage lenders and then claimed substantial refunds from the IRS. After processing the false returns, the IRS allegedly issued refunds totaling over $1 million. To prevent the IRS from recovering the fraudulently obtained refunds, the conspirators allegedly created trusts, opened new bank accounts in the name of business entities and the trusts, and transferred the criminal proceeds between the accounts to conceal the funds from the IRS. Lawrence also allegedly filed retaliatory liens on behalf of Dumlao and the Mirandas against an IRS employee assigned to recover the fraudulently obtained refunds. The superseding indictment further alleges that Lastimado-Dradi, Dumlao, and Elvah Miranda laundered the fraudulently obtained refunds through a series of bank transactions.

Lawrence and Ross Morton were arrested on September 15 and were arraigned on September 23 before U.S. Magistrate Judge Rom A. Trader of the U.S. District Court for the District of Hawaii.

If convicted, each of the six individuals charged face a maximum sentence of five years for conspiracy to defraud the United States. Lastimado-Dradi, Dumlao, and Elvah Miranda each face a maximum sentence of ten years in prison for each count of money laundering. The Mirandas and Dumlao each face a maximum sentence of three years for each count of filing a false tax return and a maximum sentence of five years for each count of making false statements under oath in a bankruptcy proceeding. Dradi faces a maximum sentence of three years for each count of aiding and assisting in the preparation of false tax returns. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and Acting U.S. Attorney Judith A. Philips for the District of Hawaii made the announcement.

The IRS-Criminal Investigation is investigating the case.

Trial Attorneys Sarah A. Kiewlicz and Valerie G. Preiss of the Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregg Paris Yates of the U.S. Attorney’s Office are prosecuting the case.

An indictment is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.