Nakeisha Hall — IRS “Last Resort” Betrayal
Nakeisha Hall worked for the IRS Taxpayer Advocate Service (TAS) — the place people turn when normal IRS channels fail, including victims of identity theft and taxpayers in severe financial hardship. According to federal prosecutors, instead of protecting those taxpayers, Hall used her IRS access to steal personal data from the very people seeking help, then filed fraudulent returns and routed refunds to prepaid debit cards mailed to “drop addresses” controlled by co-conspirators. The scheme sought more than $1 million in refunds and resulted in approximately $438,000 withdrawn before investigators traced the activity back to Hall’s user ID.
Key Facts
How it unraveled
IRS investigators flagged a repeating pattern: multiple refunds for different taxpayers were being routed to the same small set of physical addresses (the “drop” locations). When investigators traced the filings and account activity, they linked the suspicious returns back to access and actions associated with Hall’s IRS credentials.
Sources
- U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Attorney’s Office (N.D. Alabama) — “IRS Employee Sentenced to Nine Years and Two Months in Prison for Leading $1 Million ID Theft Tax Fraud Scheme” (August 24, 2016)
- U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Attorney’s Office (N.D. Alabama) — “IRS Employee Charged in $1 Million ID Theft Tax Fraud Scheme” (December 23, 2015)
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit — United States v. Nakeisha Hall, No. 20-13969 (May 17, 2021) — denial of compassionate release; conviction reaffirmed
- U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama (Birmingham Division) — Case No. 2:15-cr-00314-KOB-JHE-1, Chief District Judge Karon O. Bowdre
- Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) — Investigating agency referenced in DOJ filings; case cited as an example of internal IRS corruption. Statements attributed to TIGTA Special Agent in Charge Karl A. Stiften.
Viewer note
Do not harass or contact people involved. The purpose is understanding the pattern and protecting yourself.