Tax-Prep Business Owner Found Guilty of Conspiring to Defraud the IRS
ANALYSIS · September 4, 2026 · USAO Eastern District of Pennsylvania
Slug: chayaud-tax-prep-irs-conspiracy
Primary source
- Owner of Tax Prep Business Found Guilty of Conspiring to Defraud IRS — USAO EDPA, Sep 4, 2026
Core Tension
Trial conviction, sentence not yet imposed. No tax-loss total in the release; the December 15 sentencing date has no year stated.
What happened
- Manoach Chayaud, 43, of Carmel, Indiana, convicted at trial of conspiracy to defraud the IRS.
- Scheme roughly November 2013–February 2022 in EDPA and elsewhere; recruited two others; offices in Indiana and Philadelphia.
- False Schedule C losses, fraudulent education credits, fraudulent Schedule A deductions; split proceeds / paid a percentage of fees.
- Sentencing scheduled December 15 (year not specified in the release); max possible 5 years and/or fine.
- No loss-dollar total in the PR. IRS-CI; AUSAs Jessica Rice, David Ignall.
Claims check
| Claim | Assessment | Receipt |
|---|---|---|
| Sentenced / judgment term locked | No — trial conviction; sentence pending | USAO PR: found guilty at trial; sentencing date set, term not imposed. |
| Total billed / tax loss | Not in PR | No loss dollar stated; do not invent a scheme-total figure. |
| Sentencing Dec 15 | Date stated; year unspecified in release | PR gives December 15 without year — flag as unspecified. |
| Max 5 years and/or fine | Statutory max exposure, not imposed | Potential maximum only. |
Coverage
Typically a DOJ / USAO wire reprint. Multi-outlet coverage: not mapped this pass.
Publish-ready ANALYSIS draft · Storm Wire · 2026-09-07 · for /analysis/chayaud-tax-prep-irs-conspiracy