Sauk Rapids Man Sentenced for Filing False Tax Returns

MINNEAPOLIS -- A Sauk Rapids man has been sentenced to 15 months in prison for filing false tax returns.

United States Attorney Erica MacDonald says 41-year-old Adam Lashinski pleaded guilty in June.  He was sentenced Monday.

According to Lashinski's guilty plea and documents filed in court, he falsely claimed to be a certified public accountant, prepared and filed dozens of fraudulent federal and state individual income tax returns for his acquaintances between 2013 and 2015.

Lashinski admitted to repeatedly filing returns in the names of the taxpayers that omitted taxable income and claimed false adjustments, deductions, and business expenses, which resulted in larger refunds than what the taxpayers were actually entitled to receive.

The total tax loss was $208,550.