Nakeisha Hall, a 39-year-old former IRS employee, pleaded guilty in federal court on Monday to ID theft and orchestration of a tax-fraud scheme. The scheme involved as much as $1.5 million in fraudulent income tax returns.
Hall’s job was assisting taxpayers who were experiencing problems with identity theft. She had worked in the Birmingham Taxpayer Advocate Service office from July 2007 to November 2011. Since November 2011 she was in TAS offices in Salt Lake City, New Orleans and Omaha.
U.S. Attorney Joyce White Vance stated that Hall “used her IRS access to compromise taxpayers’ identities and try to steal more than $1 million dollars from the U.S. Treasury.” Vance went on to say that taxpayers must be able to trust IRS employees to protect their private information, not steal it and use it for personal gain.
Charges against Hall include aggravated identity theft, theft of government funds, conspiracy to commit bank and mail fraud, and unauthorized access to a protected computer. She was indicted by a federal grand jury in December, along with 37-year-old Abdulla Coleman and 37-year-old Jimmie Goodman, both of Birmingham. They were charged with taking part in the scheme.
Hall has agreed to restitution and forfeiture of $438,187, which represents funds actually paid out by the IRS due to the scheme. Her sentencing is scheduled for June 29.