Vancouver tax preparer receives fine and 12-month jail sentence for tax evasion

Vancouver, British Columbia, January 28, 2016 ... The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) announced today that Shiraz Kaba was sentenced in Vancouver Provincial Court on January 27, 2016, after pleading guilty to two counts of making false statements and two counts of income tax evasion. He was ordered to serve a 12-month jail sentence and fined $72,020. The fine represents 100% of the total federal income tax he attempted to evade on his clients’ tax returns.

A CRA investigation found that Mr. Kaba, a tax preparer operating as Shiraz Kaba & Company Ltd., reported $305,112 in false expenses and deductions on the returns of 24 of his clients during the 2010 to 2011 tax years. The clients were not aware that Mr. Kaba reported false expenses and deductions on their tax returns until contacted by the CRA. The fraud resulted in the evasion of $47,392 in federal tax payable and overpayments of $18,365 in Canada child tax benefits and $6,263 in goods and services tax credits.

Mr. Kaba was convicted for similar offences in 2011. He was in breach of his conditional sentence order at the time the current offences were committed.

The preceding information was obtained from the court records.

Taxpayers who claim false expenses, credits or rebates from the government are subject to serious consequences. They are liable not only for corrections to their tax returns and payment of the full amount of tax owing, but also to penalties and interest. In addition, if convicted of tax evasion, the court may fine them up to 200% of the tax evaded and sentence them for up to a five-year jail term.

If you have ever made a tax mistake or omission, the CRA is offering you a second chance to make things right through its Voluntary Disclosures Program (VDP). If you make a valid disclosure before you become aware that the CRA is taking action against you, you may only have to pay the taxes owing plus interest. More information on the VDP can be found on the CRA's website at www.cra.gc.ca/voluntarydisclosures.

Further information on convictions can also be found in the Media Room on the CRA website at www.cra.gc.ca/convictions.

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For media information:

Heidi Hofstad
Communications Manager
604-666-9389

Date modified:

2016-01-29