Free Republic

Jury finds Castro guilty of fraud BY ADRIANA ARCE Times staff writer A federal jury found a Laredo tax preparer guilty Friday of 15 counts of fraudulently reporting information to the Internal Revenue Service on behalf of clients that included teachers, a vice principal and a bank employee. After reviewing a week's worth of evidence involving several years of itemized deductions, expenses and fraudulent claims, the jury deliberated for two and one-half hours before returning the guilty verdict against Sandra Luz Castro. Following a 1999 IRS investigation, the government charged Castro with multiple counts of aiding clients in reporting a...

Tax preparer tells jury she made 'mistakes' BY ERINN TAYLOR Times staff writer A Laredo tax preparer accused of assisting in the preparation of fraudulent tax returns continued her second day of testimony Thursday, telling the jury she made "mistakes" while preparing tax returns but "they were not intentional." U.S. District Judge Keith P. Ellison reminded Sandra Luz Castro she was still under oath as she took the witness stand. Castro is accused of falsifying tax return information for a total of more than $1.1 million in fictitious claims. Jurors listened as Assistant U.S. Attorney Arthur Jones questioned Castro about...