For the third time since December, a Polk County tax preparer has been sentenced to prison over fraudulent tax returns.
U.S. District Judge Steven D. Merryday sentenced Timothy Smith of Winter Haven to six years and six months in federal prison for conspiracy to commit wire fraud and aiding and assisting in the filing of false and fraudulent tax returns.
The court also ordered Smith to forfeit $274,000, the proceeds of the criminal conduct, and to pay restitution of more than $1.6 million to the Internal Revenue Service, the Department of Justice said in a news release. Smith entered a guilty plea on Sept. 26, 2025, the release said…