Former South Lake Tahoe resident sentenced for claiming excessive federal tax refund

FRESNO, Calif. — U.S. District Judge Lawrence J. O’Neill on Monday sentenced Gwen Noel Luckett, 59, formerly of South Lake Tahoe, to two years in prison and ordered her to pay $605,692 in restitution to the Internal Revenue Service, U.S. Attorney Benjamin Wagner announced.

According to the indictment, Luckett filed a fraudulent 2008 tax return in July 2009 with the Fresno Service Center claiming excessive federal tax withholding and investment expenses that she did not incur. Before filing this return, Luckett had failed to file a return for at least the prior six years. As a result of the false tax return, she obtained a $605,692 refund.

This case was the product of an investigation by the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Stanley A. Boone prosecuted the case.

— Writer Lauren Horwood is a press officer for the U.S. Department of Justice