Feds arrest man who brought fraudulent $32 million tax refund check to Ohio bank
An Atlanta man was arrested this week after attempting to process a $32 million tax refund check at an Ohio bank.
According to federal prosecutors, 48 year-old Christopher Dowtin received tax refund checks that were intended for legitimate businesses, and illegally converted them to his name and address. One of the checks alone was worth $32 million.
Court documents state he allegedly submitted fraudulent IRS forms for two separate companies to be the responsible party for the checks.
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On Feb. 13, Dowtin took two checks from Georgia to a Morgan Stanley bank in Beavercreek, Ohio, attempting to negotiate the funds into a brokerage account in a trust in his name. He told bank employees the companies were paying him for illegally using his “personhood.”
On Feb. 19, Morgan Stanley contacted the United States Secret Service and IRS Criminal Investigation about the suspicious nature of his paperwork, and the checks were seized.
According to federal prosecutors, wire fraud is punishable by up to 20 years in prison, while theft of public funds is punishable by up to 10 years in prison.
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