CHAMBERSBURG, Pa. — A Franklin County man will serve up to 27 months in prison for filing fraudulent tax returns from 2013 to 2016.
Guibbonz Marcellus, 43, of Chambersburg, was sentenced last Friday at a hearing before U.S. District Court Judge Jennifer P. Wilson, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania.
Marcellus was convicted on 23 counts of aiding and assisting the preparation of false and fraudulent tax returns following a jury trial in July 2023, according to U.S. Attorney Gerard M. Karam.
Marcellus is the former operator of M&M Confident Multi Services, a tax preparation business in Chambersburg, from 2013 to 2016, Karam said.
"In an effort to increase refund amounts and generate business, Marcellus regularly included false numbers on the returns he prepared and filed," Karam said in a press release. "The returns falsely claimed, among other things, the federal fuel-tax credit, business losses, and deductions for charitable gifts and unreimbursed employee expenses."
The Court found that the total loss to the government due to Marcellus’s conduct was over $208,000.
The case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Carlo D. Marchioli and former Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul J. Miovas prosecuted the case.