Clarkston tax preparer sentenced for multi-year tax fraud and prohibited from preparing future returns

Mohamed Hersi has been sentenced to federal prison for filing false tax returns. Hersi, who owned a tax preparation business, filed false returns on behalf of unwitting clients, collected more than $1 million in preparer fees, and then failed to disclose his own income to the IRS.

“The community trusted Hersi to provide sound tax advice to comply with our tax laws,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan.  “But Hersi betrayed his clients’ trust, pocketed their fees, and then lied on his own returns.”

“Tax return preparer fraud is a serious breach of responsibilities for themselves and on behalf of their clients, leading to degrading trust and confidence of our tax system,” said Demetrius Hardeman, Acting Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation, Atlanta Field Office. “IRS special agents and our law enforcement partners remain vigilant in upholding the integrity of the tax system and holding individuals accountable for their actions.”

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges and other information presented in court: Hersi owned and operated Map Wireless Inc., d/b/a “1st Tax Center,” “Metro Tax Center,” and “Investment Financial Services” in Clarkston, Georgia. Between 2016 and 2020, Hersi prepared and filed false income tax returns for his clients that claimed false Schedule C items, withholdings, education credits, expenses, and itemized deductions to obtain inflated refunds to which his clients were not entitled.

On some occasions, Hersi provided one version of the return he planned to file to his clients, then filed a different version with the IRS which included both falsely claimed items and different direct deposit information.  During the scheme, Hersi collected over $1.2 million in fees from his clients, but never disclosed that income to the IRS, resulting in a loss of more than $400,000.

Mohamed Hersi, 40, of Decatur, Georgia, was sentenced to two years in prison to be followed by one year of supervised release, and he was ordered to complete 40 hours of community service and to pay restitution in the amount of $439,543. Hersi’s sentence also includes a prohibition on his preparing taxes for others in the future.

This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Tiffany Dillingham prosecuted the case.