Rashia Wilson bragged she was ‘queen’ of IRS tax fraud, taunted authorities as Arswaya Ralph gets 2 years
Wearing a Nike t-shirt, black shorts and tennis shoes, Rashia Wilson arrived in court.
The self-proclaimed “First Lady” of tax fraud faced a gun possession charge, but will be investigated further for her role in IRS tax fraud ring that was busted last week near Tampa.
NEW UPDATE, DEC 2012: The “First Lady” has been indicted – read the details here.
Rashia Tocara Wilson 2007 mugshot for “grand theft” arrest Pinellas Sheriff’s Office
U.S. Marshals arrested Wilson on a weapons charge brought by IRS-Criminal Investigations on Friday morning, capping a tedious operation, nicknamed Operation Rainmaker, to capture the alleged perpetrators of Tampa tax fraud.
Authorities have been tracking the 26-year-old from her relocation to Wimauma to the gun range and buying an Audi with a $90,000 money order.
Tampabay.com detailed the initial hearing for the “First Lady” if tax fraud as her Facebook page was read aloud.
“I’m Rashia, the queen of IRS tax fraud. … I’m a millionaire for the record. So if you think that indicting me will be easy, it won’t. I promise you. I won’t do no time, dumb b——.”
IRS-CI special agent Gary W. Smedley said investigators found a .22-caliber Walther beneath Wilson’s mattress, a cellphone photo of her with a pink firearm and a Facebook image of her with the Taurus at Shooting Sports Inc.
The gun control was the means for Wilson to be held, still without bail, as prosecutor read Wilson’s tax-fraud millionaire Facebook post aloud in court. She said Wilson may well have been involved in the theft of $1 million.
“Ms. Wilson is clearly very skilled at identity theft,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Sara C. Sweeney said.
The prosecutors detailed the “staggering” amount of money Wilson has “thrown around town” and the Judge conceded that “there’s a substantial and serious tax charge coming.”
In a similar case Arswaya Ralph was sentenced to two years and four months after a scheme believed to have netted $273,254. She used other people’s social security numbers in late 2010 and early 2011 to trick the government into paying phony refund claims.
Arswaya Ralph
Wilson’s “scheme” appears to have been for much, much more in damages.
Investigators found evidence at Wilson’s home that fraudulent tax returns may have been filed within the past week, Sweeney said. Printouts of medical records, dated Sept. 14, contained notations that appeared to be about tax filings.
The search Wednesday turned up thousands of ID numbers and 40 reloadable debit cards.
Wilson’s boyfriend, Maurice “Thirst” Larry, and an associate, Marterrence “Quat” Holloway, were picked up Wednesday on a 39-count indictment that accused them of conspiring to defraud the federal government, wire fraud, access device fraud and aggravated identity theft.
Wilson has been arrested 40 times since age 12, but has never gone to state prison.
Before the hearing began, she mouthed messages to a row of family members, including her mother. At times, she shielded her words with a paper copy of the criminal complaint.
After many minutes of this, a U.S. Marshal told her to turn around and face forward. She did.
[…] Florida woman, the self-proclaimed “First Lady” of tax refund fraud, is facing 57 charges in an indictment handed up by a federal grand […]