Salinas woman pleads guilty to conspiring to file fake tax returns for more than $9.7 million

A Salinas woman pleaded guilty to conspiring to file fraudulent claims for income tax refunds for more than $9.7 million.

According to the United States Department of Justice, 43-year-old Ana Bajo conspired with others to get personal information from other people and use it to file more than 2,300 fraudulent income tax returns with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).

“These returns reported fake wages and fraudulently claimed dependents, education expenses and tax credits,” said the DOJ.

Of the $9.7 million in refunds sought, the IRS paid more than $7.5 million to Bajo and her co-conspirators.

A judge has scheduled a sentencing for Sept. 26. Bajo faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, a period of supervised release, restitution, and monetary penalties.