By The Epoch Times | Created at 2026-10-15 00:57:03 | Updated at 2026-10-15 02:46:58
1 hour ago
Colin McDonald, U.S. assistant attorney general for the Justice Department's fraud division, speaks about his agency's efforts to crack down on government-program fraud in Columbus, Ohio, on June 4, 2026. Janice Hisle/The Epoch Times
The U.S. Department of Justice announced Wednesday the first nationwide “tax fraud surge” that led to prosecutorial actions against 76 defendants in 45 days whose alleged crimes totaled an intended loss of over $490 million.
The enforcement action involved 35 U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, the Justice Department’s National Fraud Enforcement Division, and IRS Criminal Investigation, according to a DOJ statement.
The DOJ said new charges against 31 defendants involved more than $350 million in estimated intended losses to the federal government, while trials, guilty pleas and sentencings involving 45 other defendants accounted for nearly $140 million in estimated intended losses.
“We must protect and restore the billions of dollars being stolen from the American people every year,” U.S. Assistant Attorney General Colin McDonald said at a press conference. “We will continue to prosecute fraudsters who intentionally violate a known legal duty by lying to the IRS, cheating the federal government out of lawful revenue, and stealing money that would otherwise fund vital government programs.”
McDonald said the federal investigators were not looking for people “who clicked the wrong button on an online filing form.” He said the government was looking for people who lied on purpose to take money that they knew did not belong to them.
One case discussed during Wednesday’s press conference involved Martin Navarrete, 66, of Glenn Dale, Maryland. He was charged in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland with failure to collect, account, and pay over taxes and willful failure to file tax returns.
The term “pay over tax” means that a person or business has to turn over to the federal government taxes that it is legally required to collect or withhold from someone else.
Navarrete is accused of failing to account for and pay over trust fund taxes on behalf of Navarrete’s employees at Navarrete Brothers Construction from September 2020 through December 2025.
Gabriel Reyes of the Office of the Federal Public Defender, who was listed in court documents as the attorney representing Navarrete, didn’t respond to an email seeking comment.
“This prosecution sends a clear and strong message that we will root out fraudsters, charge cheaters, and bring justice to those who think our tax laws don’t apply to them,” Kelly O. Hayes, U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland, said in a statement. “Tax fraud not only harms the federal government, but also adversely affects every American who plays by the rules.”
Another case involved Marty Linville, 58, of De Queen, Arkansas. Linville, who owned a trucking business, was accused of not filing the W-2 forms to the Social Security Administration and did not submit withheld employment taxes to the IRS. He pleaded guilty to two counts of willful failure to account for and pay over trust fund taxes. He was sentenced to 20 months in prison and ordered to pay restitution of more than $3.8 million. Fred Norton, listed as the attorney for Linville in court documents, did not return an email seeking comment.
McDonald said criminals steal hundreds of billions of dollars every year from the taxpayer.
“More taxpayer dollars go to fraudsters every year than to most federal departments and agencies, including the combined budgets of the departments of Energy, Justice and Interior,” McDonald said.
Trump’s anti-fraud effort involves a government-wide task force chaired by Vice President JD Vance and a Justice Department National Fraud Enforcement Division that was created April 7.
The division has targeted fraud involving healthcare, government benefits and contracts, taxes and trade.
In March, Vance had talked about a “whole of government” approach to combating fraud in the U.S. using a coordinated multi-agency strategy.
