The Department of Justice (DoJ) took prosecutorial action against 76 defendants whose alleged and proven tax crimes intended an estimated loss of more than $490 million to the federal government.

DoJ announced the actions with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and IRS Criminal Investigation in a press release on Wednesday. The move comes during the department's first-ever National Tax Enforcement Surge, which ran from early September and involved 35 U.S. Attorneys' Offices.

Inside The DOJ's Tax Enforcement Surge

Prosecutors returned 23 actions with new charges against 31 defendants, with an estimated intended loss exceeding approximately $350 million. About 39 other actions, including trials, guilty pleas and sentencings, affected another 45 defendants, with nearly $140 million in estimated intended loss.

Notable cases included an indictment of four Texas residents over an alleged fraudulent trust scheme with an estimated tax loss of more than $200 million.

An indictment is merely an allegation, and defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in court, the agency noted.

IRS Vows To Crack Down On Tax Fraud

Attorney General Todd Blanche said, "What we uncovered during this concentrated surge is only the tip of the iceberg."

Colin McDonald, assistant attorney general of the National Fraud Enforcement Division, said those who "intentionally lie to steal the money of the American people should expect to answer for their conduct in federal court."

On the IRS side, IRS CEO Frank Bisignano said the agency is working across government to go after fraud. "This enforcement surge delivered results for taxpayers," he said.

Jarod Koopman, chief of IRS Criminal Investigation and chief tax compliance officer, said the cases involve hundreds of millions in identified tax losses. "When taxpayers evade their legal obligations, the burden does not disappear, it is shifted to law-abiding Americans," he said.

Vance's Broader Anti-Fraud Effort

The department's fraud work supports the Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance.

Vance's task force and the General Services Administration said in September they identified $1.22 billion in suspected fraud across five Department of Health and Human Services COVID-era contracts.

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