Georgia

Tax preparer faces prison time, fine for making fraudulent tax returns in Georgia

Published

1 year ago

December 4, 2024

Tax preparer faces prison time, fine for making fraudulent tax returns in Georgia

A woman from Georgia faces up to 30 years in prison after she recently pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to filing more than $3 million in fraudulent tax returns on behalf of her clients.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Macon, Ga. reported last week that 33-year-old Jessica Crawford pleaded guilty to wire fraud and aiding in the preparation of false income tax returns.

District Judge Tilman “Tripp” Self has scheduled sentencing for March, but beside the prison term she also faces a fine of $1 million.

Crawford operated Crawford Tax Services on Commerce Boulevard, a business area off Atlanta Highway in Athens.

The FBI reported it was investigating a multi-state unemployment benefit scheme during the pandemic when agents discovered text messages between Crawford and a client, who had created a fake business to fraudulently obtain benefits.

Crawford profited by receiving a percentage of the gains, according to the U.S. Attorney. The criminal investigations division of the IRS joined the investigation and an undercover agent met with Crawford to have tax returns filed, according to the report.

Crawford asked the agent, posing as a customer, if he did anything on the side and he responded no, but said he did mow his aunt’s grass sometimes.

The report says “Crawford said that was good enough.”

No income or expense amounts were provided, but she created a “Schedule C business” for landscaping on the customer’s federal income return and filed a fictitious loss of $19,373. On the return, federal agents also noted she filed an earned income tax credit, a child tax credit, and a business income deduction, which called for a fraudulent federal income tax return of $12,359.

As a result, the IRS reported it began a review of 1,261 tax returns filed by Crawford over the tax years of 2020 through 2021.

Those returns show Crawford fraudulently filed tax returns on behalf of clients that resulted in losses to the IRS of more than $3 million, according to the report.

“Jessica Crawford lied and took advantage of funds designed to help those who were truly in need during the pandemic,” FBI Agent Sean Burke of the Atlanta office said in a statement released with the report.

Demetrius Hardeman, the agent in charge of the IRS Criminal Investigations Office in Atlanta, released a statement that Crawford “was an unscrupulous return preparer who allowed greed to cloud her judgment and neglect her responsibilities to help clients prepared and file a true and correct tax return.”

Hardeman encouraged people to choose their tax preparer carefully before tax season begins in January.

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Georgia

Why Southern Living is spotlighting serene coastal escape in Georgia

Published

3 hours ago

March 4, 2026

Press Room

Why Southern Living is spotlighting serene coastal escape in Georgia

A quiet stretch of the Georgia coast is back in the national spotlight.

In a recent feature, Southern Living highlighted the Golden Isles as one of the South’s most serene escapes, praising the region’s undeveloped marshes, barrier islands and slower pace compared to other East Coast beach destinations.

Located roughly halfway between Savannah and Jacksonville, the Golden Isles include Brunswick, Sea Island, St. Simons Island, Jekyll Island and Little St. Simons Island.

Here’s what to know.

What makes Georgia’s Golden Isles different?

Unlike more densely developed beach towns in neighboring states, Georgia’s coastline is defined by tidal creeks, salt marshes and wide stretches of protected land.

“The coast of Georgia is quite different than the shores of North Carolina or South Carolina,” Southern Living wrote. “It’s wilder and quieter, and it’s much less populated with beach towns.”

While the islands offer modern resorts and vacation homes, much of the natural character remains intact.

One of the most photographed spots is Driftwood Beach on Jekyll Island, known for its haunting remains of a maritime forest scattered along the shoreline.

Where are visitors staying?

The publication pointed to several well-known properties across the islands:

The Cloister at Sea Island
Jekyll Island Club Resort
St. Simons Island: The Grey Owl Inn and the St. Simons Lighthouse.

Little St. Simons Island, accessible only by boat, was highlighted for its all-inclusive lodge and thousands of acres of protected marshland and upland habitat.

What can you do in the Golden Isles?

Southern Living emphasized simple, immersive experiences:

Biking under live oaks
Kayaking through marsh creeks
Horseback riding along the beach
Watching sunsets over the water.

Public beaches like East Beach on St. Simons Island remain open to visitors, while golf courses on Jekyll Island and St. Simons offer year-round play.

The region’s history also plays a major role. Visitors can climb the St. Simons Lighthouse, explore historic districts in Brunswick or learn about Gullah Geechee heritage through local organizations.

For more information, visit southernliving.com/georgias-golden-isles-11906085.

Vanessa Countryman is the Trending Topics Reporter for the Deep South Connect Team Georgia. Email her at Vcountryman@gannett.com.

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Georgia

Gov. Kemp signs amended FY 2026 budget, delivering $2B in Georgia tax relief

Published

15 hours ago

March 3, 2026

Press Room

Gov. Kemp signs amended FY 2026 budget, delivering B in Georgia tax relief

ATLANTA, Ga. — Georgia Governor Brian P. Kemp on Tuesday signed HB 973, the amended Fiscal Year 2026 budget.

The amended budget includes $2 billion in income and property tax relief, alongside investments in education, public safety, mental health, transportation and rural development.

Lt. Gov. Burt Jones praised Gov. Kemp, saying the budget…

“Makes critical investments in middle-class families, mental health services, healthcare workforce development, transportation and Georgia’s veterans community.”

Key allocations in the amended budget include:

Education and Workforce Development: $325 million to endow the DREAMS Scholarship, a new needs-based scholarship program; $6 million for a Career Navigator tool; and funding for new and expanded programs at University System of Georgia and Technical College System of Georgia institutions.
Public Safety: $150 million for Department of Corrections bed space, $9.7 million for additional corrections officers, $15 million for a new K-9 training facility, and $50 million to help communities address homelessness, including among veterans.
Mental Health: $409 million to design and construct a new Georgia Regional Hospital to expand mental health bed capacity.
Transportation: More than $1.6 billion to extend and expand I-75 express lanes in Henry County; $185 million for SR 316 interchange conversions; $100 million for rural bridge rehabilitation and replacement; and $250 million for local maintenance and improvement grants.
Rural Georgia: $15 million for rural site development grants; $35 million for a new natural gas infrastructure program; and $8.9 million for the Georgia Forestry Innovation Initiative.

Governor Kemp says the state’s conservative budgeting approach has allowed Georgia to provide tax relief while making “generational investments.”

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Georgia

Middle Georgia DSA condemns U.S.-Israel strikes on Iran, calls escalation ‘illegal’

Published

1 day ago

March 3, 2026

Press Room

Middle Georgia DSA condemns U.S.-Israel strikes on Iran, calls escalation ‘illegal’

MACON, Ga. (WGXA) — Middle Georgia Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) has issued a statement regarding the U.S. and Israel’s joint strikes on Iran over the weekend.

According to other WGXA articles, based on reports as of early March 2026, the United States and Israel have launched major, coordinated military operations against Iran, labeled in reports as “Operation Epic Fury” and “Operation Midnight Hammer”. This follows months of failed nuclear negotiations and escalating regional tensions.

RELATED | Hegseth insists US-Israel strikes on Iran are ‘not Iraq, not endless’

WGXA asked Middle Georgia DSA, the largest activist organization in Middle Georgia, for their opinions on the strikes, and they responded with this:

The strikes on Iran, carried out by the United States and Israel, mark a catastrophic escalation in an illegal act of aggression. The Iranian people do not deserve to live in fear of American bombs and of the instability of regime change. Americans do not want our tax dollars and the lives of our people to be wasted on opening up a new war in the Middle East, or on bombing girls’ elementary schools. We want relief from the affordability crisis. We want peace. Middle Georgia DSA unequivocally condemns these attacks and any politicians who cannot do the same. We do not want this, we do not deserve this.

DSA added that they are not currently planning any protests at this time, and that they “remain focused on improving the conditions of people who live within our communities directly, and do not feel a protest is the best strategy to deliver on that.”

Middle Georgia DSA condemns U.S.-Israel strikes on Iran, calls escalation ‘illegal’, March 2, 2026 (Image is meant to say 2026 instead of 2025, Courtesy of GCSU Mutual Aid)

However, GCSU Mutual Aid, a grassroots, community-led initiative focused on collective care and resource sharing within the Milledgeville and broader Middle Georgia area. While not an official department of Georgia College & State University (GCSU), it frequently operates in coordination with student-led groups and local residents to address gaps in traditional social safety nets.

RELATED | GCSU encourages peaceful expression ahead of national ICE walkout

GCSU Mutual Aid is planning a protest for Wednesday, where they will be “Marching for Democracy” in retaliation to recent events in the U.S.

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