Santa Rosa tax preparer gets 18 months in prison for fraud

A Santa Rosa tax preparer was sentenced Tuesday to 18 months in federal prison for filing two false returns and failing to report his financial interest in foreign bank accounts.

Efrain Arturo Jovel, 64, pleaded guilty in October for failing to report bank accounts in El Salvador and Guatemala on his 2009 and 2010 income tax filings, and not disclosing interest income of $35,104 earned from those bank accounts.

Jovel also admitted he underreported gross receipts from his tax preparation service of $244,120 and $307,846, respectively, resulting in a reported tax loss of $175,023.

He and his wife, Elizabeth Jovel, were the owners of America’s Income Tax in Coddingtown Plaza, which was raided by IRS agents in 2012.

Prosecutors said that Efrain Jovel owned and operated a tax return business for more than 30 years, first out of his home and then out of his office on Guerneville Road. Jovel prepared about 1,800 returns annually.

Efrain Jovel has not been associated with America’s Income Tax since 2013, according to the current owner, Elizabeth Cortina.

But the company’s website on Tuesday listed Elizabeth Jovel as a licensed tax preparer at the firm and noted that “her specialty is preparing returns for low-income individuals and the knowledge of tax credits for those clients.”

Prior to sentencing, Efrain Jovel agreed to pay a penalty of $287,896.

In addition to his sentence, U.S. District Judge Richard Seeborg also ordered Jovel to serve a three-year period of supervised release, pay restitution of $175,023 and a $10,000 fine.

You can reach Staff Writer Bill Swindell at 521-5223 or bill.swindell@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @BillSwindell.