WCDO Radio News

State Department of Taxation and Finance today announced the arrest of 2 tax preparers and 9 other individuals on charges that they filed false tax returns and claimed exaggerated refunds. The two preparers are 35 year old Heather Sweet of Johnson City, and 56 year old Rebecca Tyner of Binghamton. Sweet was charged with 8 felony counts of offering a false instrument for filing and 1 count of grand larceny. Tyner was charged with 5 felony counts of offering a false instrument for filing and 1 count of grand larceny. Both defendants were arraigned in the Binghamton City Court; the pair allegedly participated in a scheme to defraud New York State by preparing fraudulent NYS income tax returns for friends and relatives for the tax years 2008 through 2011.