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A 59-year-old Ewa Beach woman was sentenced Tuesday in federal court to a two-year prison term for falsifying information on an income tax return she prepared for clients and for falsifying her own tax return.
U.S. District Court Judge J. Michael Seabright also ordered tax preparer Merla Balubar to pay restitution totaling $326,799 to the United States.
According to news released issued by the U.S. Attorney’s office in Hawaii, Balubar provided tax preparation services while doing business as Filcom Tax Services LLC. She prepared returns for clients for a fee, covering tax years 2006 through 2009. The returns contained false information that resulted in refunds, to which the clients were not entitled, or reduced the tax liability, according to the release. The returns included false overstatements of deductible expenses, according to documents filed in connection with the case.
Balubar also prepared a joint tax return for herself and her husband, for tax year 2007. According to documents, the tax return contained false statements of fact by under reporting income from business operation, income from rental property, and gambling income. In addition, the return also contained false itemized deductions. Balubar also admitted to filing false returns for tax years 2008 and 2009.
The case resulted from a criminal investigation conducted by Internal Revenue Service.
