Local man indicted for filing false tax returns

HOUSTON - A suburban Houston man is set to appear on charges of filing fraudulent and false statements on his federal tax returns, announced U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani.

Joseph Patrick Butler is expected to make his initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Peter Bray at 2 p.m.

A federal grand jury returned the four-count indictment April 4 which was unsealed upon his arrest. It alleges for tax years 2017 through 2020, Butler signed false joint Form 1040 U.S. individual income tax returns and received inflated tax refunds to which he was not entitled.

According to the indictment, Butler's joint tax returns include false entries showing he allegedly received hundreds of thousands in wages. His employers allegedly withheld over $100,000 per year.

The indictment also alleges Butler falsely received over $260,000 in refunds for tax years 2013 through 2020.

If convicted, Butler faces up to three years in federal prison and a $250,000 maximum possible fine for each of the four counts as charged.

IRS Criminal Investigation conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brad Gray and Shirin Hakimzadeh are prosecuting the case.

An indictment is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence. A defendant is presumed innocent unless convicted through due process of law.