Here’s how a Florida tax preparer embezzled $120,000 from a client over three years

David J. Neal
·2 min read

The owner of Kissimmee’s 1 Plus Tax and Accounting Group doesn’t show up in a license search as a certified public accountant, but he’s now a convicted tax fraud and embezzler.

Marcos Tejeda got sentenced to a year and a half in federal prison and $131,978 restitution after pleading guilty in Orlando federal court to two counts of fraud and false statements. He got busted by his client, referred to in his guilty plea as “S.M.” and the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigations.

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According to Tejeda’s admission of facts, S.M. used 1 Plus for personal and business accounting work from 2016-2018. That included preparing S.M.’s business tax returns.

In 2016 and 2017, Tejeda prepared two returns each year. The return with the honest figures, including estimated payments already made, Tejeda presented to S.M. For 2016, S.M. owed $55,746 and had paid $20,000 in estimated payments. Those numbers were $56,577 and $40,000, respectively, for 2017.

The fraudulent tax return with fake numbers for S.M.’s business gross income, capital gains, etc. went to the IRS. The 2016 fugazy return said S.M. owed only $578 in taxes, $55,168 under the honest total.The 2017 tax return said S.M. owed only $158 in taxes, $56,419 under reality. Neither mentioned estimated tax payments made.

“Tejeda sent the incorrect tax amounts to the IRS on S.M.’s behalf and kept the money S.M. deposited into the business bank account for his personal benefit,” Tejeda’s admission of facts says.

Tejeda admitted to S.M. he never sent in the estimated payments to the IRS. S.M. had given Tejeda $20,175.74 in 2016 for quarterly estimated payments, $53,207.72 in 2017 and $46,946 in 2018, a total of $120,329.46 embezzled from S.M.

Also, Tejeda threw a 1 Plus employee under the bus as preparer of S.M.’s 2016 return, even using her preparer tax identification number without her knowing.