Novato woman pleads guilty to wire fraud in tax return scheme
SAN FRANCISCO - A Novato woman has pleaded guilty to charges related to a scheme prosecutors said involved stealing people's names and Social Security numbers and filing false tax returns without their knowledge.
Parnian Djafarzadeh, aka Parnian Clark, aka Saundra Djafarzadeh, 42, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to possessing stolen mail, filing a false claim and committing wire fraud in connection with a tax fraud scheme that ran from 2010 through 2012, the U.S. Department of Justice said. The personal information used was that of Marin County residents.
According to the plea agreement, Djafarzadeh filed fraudulent federal income tax returns claiming a total of $219,635.89, and the IRS paid refunds of at least $90,822.30 on those claims. Djafarzadeh also admitted she possessed stolen mail from one of her neighbors.
A federal grand jury in April 2016 indicted Djafarzadeh on one count of possession of stolen mail, 14 counts of false claims, three counts of wire fraud and three counts of aggravated identity theft. Djafarzadeh has agreed to pay restitution of at least $90,952.48.
District Court Judge Charles Breyer scheduled Djafarzadeh's sentencing hearing for April 29. The maximum sentence for wire fraud is 20 years in prison and a fine of $250,000.