American Samoa woman sentenced for tax returns fraud

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) – A 54-year-old American Samoa woman will serve two years in a federal prison for filing $1.3 million in fraudulent U.S. tax refunds.

A federal judge sentenced Coriana Ifopo Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Anchorage.

She pleaded guilty in December to 28 counts of making false claims to a government agency for tax years 2013-15.

Ifopo was arrested in Honolulu but authorities said she filed returns from Alaska to make it appear as if filers were outside of American Samoa

Authorities say Ifopo falsified tax return forms, claiming more than 200 American Samoa residents were living “off-island” and entitled to refunds and earned income credits. Prosecutors say she listed false dependents and false withholdings.

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