ST. PETERSBURG, FL — A federal convict from St. Petersburg faces charges related to a $170 million tax fraud scheme, according to a Department of Justice news release.
Matthew Walker Meredith, 39, was charged with false claims against the government, theft of government property and money laundering. If convicted on all counts, he faces a maximum penalty of 75 years in federal prison.
In 2016, he was convicted of conspiracy and possession with intent to distribute Ethylone and sentenced to three years in prison followed by three years of supervised release, the DOJ said.
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Meredith was released in October 2017 and while on supervised release, he began to submit claims for tax refunds to the Internal Revenue Service in the names of entities under his control, according to the agency.
Between August 2019 and February 2020, he submitted five “false and fraudulent” claims to the IRS requesting more than $170 million in refunds, the DOJ said. In the claims, he “falsified both his income and withholdings.”
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The IRS sent Meredith a check for more than $6.3 million on Nov. 23, 2019, the agency said.
He deposited the check into his bank account and in the following weeks bought a waterfront home and spent more than $840,000 on six new Mercedes Benz vehicles, the DOJ said.
The indictment against Meredith also says that the US government intends to forfeit the six vehicles and the property.
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St. Pete Man Used $170M From Tax Fraud To Buy Luxury Cars, Home: DOJ
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