North Texas tax preparers get federal prison time for defrauding nearly $8M from IRS

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A guard tower and razor wire at a prison in Texas. (Photo by Andrew Lichtenstein/Corbis via Getty Images)

GRAND PRAIRIE, Texas - Four tax preparers convicted of defrauding the IRS of nearly $8 million have been sentenced to a combined 105 months in federal prison, announced Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Nancy E. Larson.

Owner of FA Tax in Grand Prairie Sentenced

What we know:

According to court documents, Festus Adenisimi, 65, of Mansfield, Texas, was the owner of FA Tax, a tax preparation business located in Grand Prairie, where he and other tax preparers prepared fraudulent tax returns for their clients, often causing the IRS to issue refunds to those clients.  The estimated loss to the IRS from these false tax returns totaled more than $7.5 million.

Adenisimi pleaded guilty in September 2024 to falsely preparing tax returns. As part of his plea agreement, Adenisimi also admitted to fraudulently obtaining two Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans totaling $760,415 under the Small Business Administration’s COVID -19 relief program.  

In March 2025, Adenisimi was sentenced to 57 months in prison by U.S. Senior District Judge Barbara M.G. Lynn and ordered to pay $10,283,737.65 in restitution.

Dig deeper:

Three additional tax preparers who worked for FA Tax also pleaded guilty to falsely preparing tax returns. Last week, on June 26, 2025, they were each sentenced by Judge Lynn:

• Sunshyne Endurance Ogungbemi, 37, of Waxahachie, Texas, was sentenced to 18 months in prison in April and ordered to pay $7,533,550.84 in restitution.
• Chris Mary Tijerina, 40, of Crandall, Texas, was sentenced to 15 months in prison in April and ordered to pay $7,560,661.69 in restitution.
• Cynthia Bradley, 45, of Belleville, Illinois, was sentenced to 15 months in prison in June and ordered to pay $5,768,106.28 in restitution.  

What they're saying:

"The defendants orchestrated a multi-year tax fraud scheme that caused substantial loss to the government," said Acting U.S. Attorney Nancy Larson.  "We will continue to track down those who attempt to cheat the American people, and we will hold them accountable with prison time."

"I'm proud of the women and men of IRS-CI for their commitment to protect our tax system and their resolve to ensure that those who engage in fraudulent activities face the full extent of the law," said Gerardo Gomez, Assistant Special Agent in Charge of the IRS Criminal Investigation’s Dallas Field Office. "The 105 months of federal prison time for the members of FA Tax who falsified tax returns illustrate that tax fraud is not a victimless crime."