Sacramento woman guilty of grand theft, state tax fraud
On April 3, A Sacramento woman pleaded no contest to one count of grand theft with an enhancement for a theft involving more than $150,000 and three counts of filing false state income tax returns.
Jill L. Platt, 36, pleaded no contest to the charges in a plea agreement. According to court documents, Platt embezzled more than $150,000 from her former employer, a local engineering firm. Platt had access to the company’s credit card and used it from September 2004 to October 2006 for personal items such as food, beverages, and entertainment. Platt also failed to claim the credit card purchases as income on her 2004, 2005, and 2006 state income tax returns. All income is taxable including income from illegal sources.
Platt faces a maximum of five years in state prison if sentenced to the full term under the plea agreement.
This was a joint investigation between the Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office and FTB.
Riverside man arrested April 15 on state income tax charges
On “tax day,” April 15, an Upland man was arrested on felony charges of filing false state income tax returns.
Jose Alberto Garcia, Jr., 28, is the owner and operator of Mi Oficina Income Tax, a.k.a. My Office Income Tax, a tax preparation business. According to FTB investigators, Garcia allegedly filed false tax returns for 2001 – 2004, failing to claim the nearly $968,000 in unreported income he earned during these years. The failure to claim the income was first discovered by FTB’s Fraud Prevention and Detection Unit. This program targets people who earned California income, but did not claim the income on their tax return. An earlier search warrant executed on Garcia’s bank account revealed the additional income. After today’s arrest, FTB investigators executed eight more search warrants on Garcia’s eight tax preparation businesses. Mi Oficina Income Tax offices are located in La Puente, Los Angeles, Ontario, Riverside, San Bernardino, Santa Ana, and Temple City.
Each felony tax count carries a three-year maximum term in state prison. All income is taxable, including income from illegal sources. Garcia owes the state more than $85,000 in unpaid tax on the unreported money. Penalties, interest, and the cost of the investigation will be added to the FTB’s restitution request.
Garcia was booked into the West Valley Detention Center in Rancho Cucamonga. Bail was set at $100,000, and his next court date has not been set.