Five Charged in Multi-Year Chelsea Tax Fraud and Money Laundering Scheme

Five individuals are facing fraud and money laundering charges after prosecutors alleged they orchestrated a long-running scheme in Chelsea involving stolen identities and falsified tax returns that generated more than $220,000 in fraudulent refunds.

The case arises from a multi-agency investigation into a tax fraud operation that spanned from April 2017 through July 2021, according to a statement released by the Suffolk District Attorney’s office.

Prosecutors allege that Danny Oviedo, 37, of Lynn, worked as a tax preparer at Lean’s Tax Service in Chelsea and used his position to submit tax returns on behalf of clients that included fabricated deductions. Authorities claim Oviedo also misused client information, stealing identities and filing 145 fraudulent personal income tax returns. Investigators said he arranged for refund checks to be issued to aliases and sent to addresses connected to himself and members of his family.

According to a statement of facts filed in court, Oviedo fraudulently endorsed refund checks totaling $222,827.48 and deposited the funds into his personal bank accounts, keeping the money rather than distributing it to clients. Court documents further state that Oviedo failed to file his own personal income tax returns for 2019 and 2020.

His wife, 34-year-old Estefany Oviedo, also of Lynn, is accused of opening bank accounts that were used to deposit the majority of the 142 fraudulent refund checks, which totaled more than $217,000. Prosecutors allege that Estefany Oviedo and associate Antonio Pires, a 59-year-old Wilmington resident, used proceeds from the scheme to purchase a property located at 7 Harrington Ave. in Revere. Pires, who is married to an employee of Lean’s Tax Service, also shares property ownership in Lynn with Danny Oviedo.

Authorities said Oviedo and Pires submitted false information on a mortgage loan application, misrepresenting their income, assets, and intended occupancy of the property. Specifically, Pires claimed he would live at the residence and receive $3,000 per month in rental income from Carlos Oviedo, Danny Oviedo’s brother and another employee of Lean’s Tax Service. However, prosecutors said Pires never reported this rental income on his personal tax filings, even though Carlos Oviedo listed the Revere property address on his own tax returns.

Mirian Pineda, 58, of Revere, who is Danny Oviedo’s mother and serves as president of Lean’s Tax Service, is also implicated in the case. Court documents allege that Pineda used deposits made into her company’s accounts to qualify for a mortgage. According to the statement of facts, she failed to report more than $391,000 in deposits on her 2020 and 2021 Massachusetts Corporate Excise Returns, despite identifying herself as the sole owner of the business. Prosecutors further allege that she did not report those company funds on her personal income tax returns for the same years.

Court records indicate that Danny Oviedo faces numerous charges, including three counts of larceny over $1,200 by a single scheme, six counts of forgery of a document, six counts of uttering false writing, three counts of identity fraud, three counts of aiding in the filing of false tax returns, three counts of filing false tax returns, two counts of failure to file tax returns, larceny by false pretense in a commercial transaction, and money laundering.

Estefany Oviedo, Antonio Pires, and Mirian Pineda are each charged with money laundering and larceny by false pretense in a commercial transaction. In addition, Pineda faces charges of filing false tax returns and nine counts of failure to file a tax return, while Estefany Oviedo is also charged with two counts of receiving stolen property over $1,200.

Danny Oviedo, Estefany Oviedo, Pires, and Pineda were released on personal recognizance and are scheduled to return to court on June 22 for pretrial hearings. Authorities said Carlos Oviedo will be arraigned at a later date.

By fLEXI tEAM