A 52-year-old Warren woman is headed to prison after prosecutors say she invented a tax refund worth more than $374,000 and used the fraudulent windfall to buy a house and a BMW. Robin Young was sentenced to four years and three months behind bars, with the vehicle now set to be sold off to help pay back what she owes.
Young was sentenced to the 51-month term after pleading guilty in August to one count each of residential mortgage fraud exceeding $100,000, using a computer to commit a crime, and filing a false tax return, according to FOX 2 Detroit. The case was handled in Wayne County Circuit Court in Detroit, as The Macomb Daily reported.
A Fabricated Refund Turns Into a House and a BMW
At the center of the case is a 2023 e-file tax return in which Young falsely claimed a refund of more than $374,000, the station's report states. Investigators determined that Young knew the Department of Treasury did not actually owe her that amount, but she used more than $100,000 of the illicit refund to buy a home anyway, per the same account.
She didn't stop there. Young lied about the source of the funds to mortgage lenders, telling them the Department of Treasury owed her the money when it did not, the outlet reported. As part of the fallout, she surrendered a BMW that had been purchased with the fraudulent refund; the vehicle will now be sold, with the proceeds applied toward restitution.
Attorney General Calls Out Tax Fraud's Ripple Effects
Young was charged by the Michigan Department of Attorney General in May, the station's report notes. Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel said she was proud of the prosecutors who secured the conviction and held accountable someone who intentionally manipulated the tax return system.
Nessel also framed the case as part of a broader problem, saying that tax and mortgage fraud siphons time and resources away from public services and harms Michigan residents who follow the rules. The Michigan Attorney General's Office provided the underlying information for the report.
