A York County man and a California resident have been indicted by a federal grand jury for their alleged roles in a massive, multi-state conspiracy to defraud the U.S. government of more than $52.7 million in pandemic-era tax relief funds.
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that Mark Keagel, of York, Pennsylvania, and Christopher Slater, of California, face federal charges including conspiracy, money laundering, and theft of government property following an investigation by IRS Criminal Investigation.
According to federal court documents filed in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, the scheme targeted tax credit programs established by Congress to support businesses during the pandemic, specifically:
Paid Sick and Family Leave Credit (SFLC): Created to reimburse employers for wages paid to workers unable to work due to COVID-19.
Employee Retention Credit (ERC): Designed to help businesses keep employees on their payrolls during economic disruptions.
Prosecutors allege that Slater orchestrated the nationwide network by recruiting business owners and utilizing their corporate details to submit at least 280 false tax returns on behalf of 35 entities. In total, the IRS paid out more than $32.2 million before the fraudulent scheme was disrupted.
Federal officials allege that Mark Keagel contributed to the conspiracy by providing sensitive corporate information for two defunct businesses he owned to one of Slater’s co-conspirators.
False tax filings were subsequently submitted using Keagel’s defunct companies, resulting in the IRS mailing approximately $3.6 million in fraudulent U.S. Treasury checks directly to Keagel. Authorities allege Keagel then systematically laundered those funds.
“This indictment alleges that Christopher Slater orchestrated a multi-state fraud scheme that sought more than $50 million in taxpayer-funded pandemic relief funds,” said Assistant Attorney General Colin M. McDonald of the Justice Department’s National Fraud Enforcement Division. “This brazen fraud is unacceptable and will not be tolerated.”
If convicted, Keagel faces up to 10 years in prison per count including money laundering, conspiracy, and theft of government property.
