Ninth defendant pleads guilty in tax fraud scheme

Two months after a tax fraud ringleader admitted fault, a ninth co-defendant has pleaded guilty to her role in the scheme.

Heather Drennen, 32, of Cameron, formerly of Springfield, pleaded guilty Sept. 3 before U.S. Magistrate Judge David Rush to creating a false and fraudulent income tax return. The ongoing litigation involves at least 19 participants in a tax fraud scheme that claimed nearly $340,630 in false returns to the IRS, according to a news release from the office of Tammy Dickinson, U.S. attorney for the Western District of Missouri.

Ringleader Cherie Christine Dupuis, 43, of Springfield, pleaded guilty in July to leading the fraudulent tax return preparation conspiracy. Dupuis admitted she and co-conspirators filed false claims for income tax refunds from February 2009 to March 2012. Over the course of the scheme, the tax loss to the IRS was $284,169.

According to the release, Drennen admitted she filed a false federal income tax return in 2011 using another person’s name and Social Security number. As a result, Drennen fraudulently received a $5,592 income tax refund.

Stretching across southwest Missouri and northwest Arkansas, the eight other co-defendants hail from Springfield to Joplin to Oak Grove to Huntsville, Ark.

Under federal statutes, Drennen is subject to a sentence of up to five years in federal prison without parole, plus a fine up to $250,000 and an order of restitution. According to the release, a sentencing hearing will be scheduled after further investigation.