A paid tax preparer in Tucson, Arizona, has been found guilty of preparing false federal income tax returns for her clients without their knowledge. Darlene Musgrove, 68, was convicted on 22 counts on October 5, and she faces sentencing on February 23, 2027.

The verdict in Tucson

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona announced the verdict in a press release dated October 6. It says Musgrove, a paid income tax preparer, was found guilty on 22 counts of preparing false federal income tax returns. The total tax loss from the 22 returns filed with the Internal Revenue Service is approximately $127,166, the office says. That works out to roughly $5,800 per return on average, a figure computed from the two published numbers rather than reported by the government.

Sentencing is scheduled for February 23, 2027, before U.S. District Judge Raner C. Collins. The release lists the maximum penalty as three years in prison and a fine of $100,000, or both. A judge sets the actual sentence after a hearing, so those are ceilings, not predictions.

Returns the client never approved

The wording in the release is what stands out: the false returns were prepared for her clients without their knowledge.

That puts the question on anyone who has paid a preparer to file a return: does the return the IRS has on file match the one that was approved? Clients of any preparer can ask for a complete copy of every return, look at the refund amount and the bank account where it was sent, and compare the income, deductions and credits to their own records. A return that shows deductions nobody recalls, or a refund much larger than expected, is worth raising with the preparer right away.

Judge Raner C. Collins is scheduled to sentence Darlene Musgrove on February 23, 2027, and that hearing is the next point in the case.

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Red flags the IRS lists

The IRS publishes a short list in its tips for choosing a tax return preparer. The red flags are a preparer who says he or she can get bigger refunds than others, a fee based on a percentage of the refund, an offer to deposit all or part of the refund into the preparer’s own account, a request to sign a blank form and no PTIN. The IRS says a taxpayer should never sign a blank form.

The same page says a good preparer asks for records and receipts and questions about income, deductions and credits. It also reminds readers that the taxpayer is ultimately accountable for every item on the return, so the return should be checked for errors before it is filed. The IRS notes that the preparer must enter a PTIN on the return, sign it and give the client a copy.

A related warning concerns ghost preparers, who do not sign the returns they prepare. The IRS says a preparer who refuses to sign, especially when e-filing, should be avoided.

Fixing a return that is wrong

A taxpayer who finds that a return holds something that should not be there usually has to amend it. The IRS explains on its page about amended returns that the fix is Form 1040-X, filed with a complete amended Form 1040, and that a taxpayer can file up to three amended returns for the same year. To claim a refund, the filing generally has to come within three years of the original return or two years after the tax was paid, whichever is later.

A return changed or filed without the taxpayer’s consent has its own form. The IRS says taxpayers can report preparer misconduct on Form 14157, the tax return preparer complaint, and that Form 14157-A, an affidavit of preparer fraud or misconduct, is for a return filed or changed without consent.

Who can speak for a taxpayer at the IRS also matters. The agency’s page on preparer credentials says enrolled agents, certified public accountants and attorneys can represent clients on any matter, including audits and collection. Preparers without those credentials may represent only clients whose returns they prepared and signed, and only before revenue agents and similar staff, not on appeals or collection.

Reviewing a return before it is filed

The simplest protection comes before the return goes out. Ask the preparer for a full paper or digital copy, read the lines for income, deductions and credits, and confirm that the routing and account numbers for any refund belong to the taxpayer. Do not sign a form with blank lines, and make sure the preparer signs and lists a PTIN.

Taxpayers who want to look up a preparer can start with the IRS directory of preparers with credentials, which the IRS describes on its choosing a tax professional page. For free help, the IRS lists VITA and TCE sites in its tips, and its Free File program offers guided software for taxpayers with adjusted gross income of $89,000 or less.

For the Tucson case, the next step on the public record is the February 23, 2027 sentencing before Judge Collins, which the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona lists in its release.

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This article was produced with AI assistance and edited for accuracy against the sources linked above.