Alabama tax preparer indicted in alleged scheme involving $65 million in paid refunds, DOJ says

A federal grand jury in the Northern District of Alabama has indicted an Alabama tax preparer on charges of preparing false and fraudulent tax returns for clients and filing false and fraudulent returns for himself, according to the Justice Department.

Michael Shine, 55, of Birmingham, owned a tax preparation business called Shine’s Professional Services, according to the indictment. Between 2021 and 2026, Shine allegedly prepared or assisted in preparing false tax returns for clients, including returns containing false information about whether clients had qualified geothermal heat pump property costs. The indictment alleges that the false information resulted in clients receiving tax refunds to which they were not entitled. Shine allegedly modified and continued the scheme after the IRS executed a search warrant at his business.

Shine is also accused of filing false personal income tax returns that underreported his income from the tax preparation business and contained other false information, according to the indictment.

Shine and his business allegedly filed tax returns claiming more than $70 million in refunds, of which $65 million was paid. Agents believe the vast majority of those refunds were based on false returns, according to the Justice Department.

Shine faces 30 counts of aiding and assisting in the preparation of a false tax return and three counts of filing a false tax return. If convicted, he faces up to three years in prison on each count, the Justice Department said.

“As alleged, Mr. Shine orchestrated a sweeping tax fraud scheme that exploited federal energy-credit programs and siphoned tens of millions of dollars from the U.S. Treasury,” said Assistant Attorney General Colin M. McDonald of the Justice Department’s National Fraud Enforcement Division. McDonald said the department will continue working with the IRS to pursue those who prepare or file knowingly false returns.

U.S. Attorney Phillip W. Williams Jr. of the Northern District of Alabama said the department is strengthening its efforts to investigate and prosecute fraud following the establishment of its Fraud Enforcement Division and vowed to use all available resources to hold offenders accountable.

IRS Criminal Investigation Special Agent in Charge Demetrius Hardeman of the agency’s Atlanta Field Office said the case illustrates how fraud harms honest taxpayers and erodes trust in the tax system. He also credited the partnership with the Justice Department’s Fraud Enforcement Division with bringing advanced investigative tools and nationwide expertise to such cases.

Trial Attorney Isaiah Boyd III of the Criminal Division’s Tax Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Allison Garnett are prosecuting the case, according to the Justice Department.

The indictment follows a federal complaint pursuant to which Shine was arrested over the same alleged conduct. A complaint and an indictment are allegations only, and Shine is presumed innocent unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.