ARLINGTON, Texas — Three family members have been sentenced to prison for their involvement in a multimillion-dollar tax refund fraud scheme, according to the Justice Department.
David Hunt, of Arlington, Texas, received a 92-month prison sentence, while his son, Baylon Hunt, was sentenced to 38 months. Baylon’s half-brother, Corey Burt, formerly of Long Beach, Mississippi, was sentenced to 94 months. The trio was convicted of orchestrating a scheme to file tax returns in the names of purported trusts they controlled, seeking over $8.5 million in undeserved tax refunds, stated the Justice Department.
The fraudulent scheme involved submitting fake documents to the IRS, including falsified financial instruments and altered money orders. Despite receiving warnings to cease their activities, the family continued filing false returns, according to the court evidence.
The co-conspirators received over $1.7 million in fraudulent proceeds, which they used to purchase luxury goods, furniture, cryptocurrency, a Cadillac Escalade, and a house in Mississippi. All four defendants were convicted of conspiracy to defraud the United States, with David Hunt, Burt, and another family member also convicted of aiding and assisting in the preparation of false tax returns. Baylon Hunt was acquitted of two counts of aiding and assisting in the preparation of false tax returns.
In addition to prison sentences, the defendants were ordered to pay $1,774,864 in restitution to the United States. The announcement was made by Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Ryan Raybould for the Northern District of Texas. The case was investigated by IRS Criminal Investigation and prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Melissa Siskind and Daniel Lipkowitz of the Criminal Division’s Tax Section, along with Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark McDonald of the Northern District of Texas.