Pennsylvania man gets 14-year sentence for tax scam

The ringleader of a broad scam that extorted more than $1 million from U.S. taxpayers through threats and intimidation received a 14-year prison sentence from a federal judge in New York on Wednesday. 

Sahil Patel, a 36-year old-from Pennsylvania, also owes the government $1 million for his two-year role in running India-based call centers that systematically targeted thousands of taxpayers.

{mosads}According to court documents, Patel’s team impersonated FBI and IRS officers, and threatened taxpayers with arrest and fines for fake crimes. The crime ring also used online technology that allowed them to give the appearance of calling from a federal agency.

The IRS and federal watchdogs have increasingly tried to warn taxpayers about callers who pretend to be from law enforcement and demand fake back tax payments — a problem that has mushroomed in recent years.

“Through his ruthless criminal enterprise, Mr. Patel has inflicted harm on thousands of innocent Americans who fell victim to his impersonation scheme,” Timothy Camus, a senior official at the Treasury inspector general for tax administration, said in a statement.  

“Victimizing taxpayers by impersonating the IRS is a serious crime and individuals who do so will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”