CHARLESTON, W.Va. — A man from Paris gets over 30 years in federal prison for orchestrating an international tax scheme.
Ayodele Arasokun, 46, of Paris, France, was sentenced in West Virginia Monday to 34 years for multiple charges relating to defrauding numerous residents, including ones from West Virginia.
In October 2022, Arakosun was convicted by a jury of 21 counts of wire fraud and aggravated identify theft.
Court documents and statements made in court detail a scheme coordinated by Arasokun where 1,701 false returns would be filed and Arasokun would claim $9.1 million in refunds. Arasokun had the money transferred to pre-paid debit cards and checking accounts, according to evidence presented during the trial.
Around 700 accounts based in the U.S. held more than $50 million, which was being tracked Arasokun. The Internal Revenue Service paid out a total of $2.2 million in fraudulent refunds.
The case was investigated by the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) – Cybercrime Investigations Division, and the IRS-CI, Los Angeles field office.