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A Washington, DC-based CPA has pleaded guilty to making a false statement on a mortgage application and failing to file an income tax return.

Timothy Trifilo was a managing director at an unnamed tax firm where he specialized in transaction structuring and advisory service, tax compliance and tax due diligence. According to the charges brought against him, Trifilo did not file federal income tax returns or pay all the taxes that he owed for a decade despite earning more than $7.7 million during that time. As a result of his actions, he caused a tax loss of more than $2 million to the IRS.

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In February 2023, Trifilo sought to obtain a $1.36 million bank-financed loan to purchase a home in Washing and was working with an unnamed mortgage company to secure the loan. After the mortgage company told Trifilo that the bank would not approve the loan without copies of Trifilo’s filed tax returns, Trifilo provided the mortgage company with fabricated documents to make it appear as if he had filed tax returns and provided copies of tax returns for 2020 and 2021. Trifilo listed a former colleague as the individual who prepared the returns and uploaded them for filing with the IRS – but this individual had never prepared Trifilo’s returns and was unaware that he was being named in the paperwork. Based on Trifilo’s false representation, the bank approved the loan and Trifilo purchased the home.

Trilio will be sentenced on May 19, 2025, and faces a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison on the charge of making a false statement on a loan application and a maximum penalty of one year in prison on the charge of failure to file a tax return. He also faces a period of supervised release, monetary penalties and restitution.

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