MONTGOMERY, Alabama–A federal grand jury in Alabama returned an indictment on March 28, charging a Montgomery woman for using stolen identities to file false tax returns.
The 19-count indictment, which was unsealed Thursday following the arrest of Antoinette Djonret, charged her with filing false claims, theft of government funds, access device fraud, aggravated identity theft and possession of unauthorized access devices.
Djonret had earlier been charged with making false claims in a criminal complaint that was filed on February 22. According to the indictment and other court documents, Davis used stolen identities to file false tax returns which fraudulently claimed refunds. Djonret had some of the refunds deposited onto a prepaid debit card in her name. Court documents state that nearly 650 tax returns were electronically filed from an IP address assigned to her residence. According to the criminal complaint, on May 22, 2010, Djonret was arrested during a traffic stop and police officers seized from her car several prepaid debit cards in the names of other individuals. The cards were linked to bank accounts that had received federal income tax refunds.
If convicted, she faces a maximum potential sentence of five years in prison for each false claims count and each theft of government funds count, 15 years in prison for the access device fraud count, 10 years in prison for the possession of unauthorized access devices count, and a mandatory two-year sentence for the aggravated identity theft counts. She is also subject to fines and mandatory restitution if convicted.
