Admin I Monday, June 30, 2025
WASHINGTON – Four residents of California have been arrested and charged for their involvement in $93 million tax credit fraud against the U.S. government.
The four are Kristerpher Turner also known as Red, Red Boy, Bullet of Harbour City, California; Kenya Jones also called Kenya Emau, Jones and Kenya Hunt of Compton, California; Toriano Knox also known as Scooby and Dwight of Los Angeles and Joyce Johnson also known as Ms. Jay of Victorville, California.
On June 11, 2025, a federal grand jury returned an indictment in Los Angeles that was unsealed today charging the four defendants with conspiracy to commit mail fraud; mail fraud; and conspiracy to submit false claims.
Two of the defendants are also charged with attempting to kill a witness and using a firearm in furtherance of that crime.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Congress authorized tax credits, including “sick and family wage credits,” otherwise known as Coronavirus Response Credits, to help alleviate the impact of COVID-19, via the Family First Coronavirus Response Act.
Under the Act, Small businesses could seek refunds on business tax returns claiming the credit.
Authorized tax credits would reimburse businesses for the wages paid to employees who could not work because of the pandemic.
According to the indictment, defendant Turner operated a tax fraud scheme whereby he and his co-conspirators would submit fraudulent forms to Coronavirus Response Credits for businesses, including bogus companies, that did not pay any sick and family wage credits to any employees at any time.
Defendant Turner and his co-conspirators would submit these fraudulent filings not only in behalf of their own purported businesses, but also in behalf of others recruited to the scheme.
Defendant Turner would direct and manage recruiters, including defendant Knox and Jones, to recruit fraudulent clients, including romantic partners.
According to the indictment, Jones recruited her family and friends to the fraud, resulting in false forms being submitted in the names of multiple businesses.
The fraudulent clients would provide their personal identifying information to be used to establish fake businesses and prepare fraudulent tax filings.
Others would provide information about preexisting businesses that were ineligible to receive Coronavirus Response Credits so that the co-conspirators could use that information to file fraudulent tax filings on behalf of those businesses.
Fraud participants would receive U.S. Treasury checks in the mail as a result of the conspiracy’s fraudulent tax filings and would attempt to deposit those Treasury Checks in business accounts opened in the name of the fake businesses at various banks.
For each fraud client that obtained Treasury checks through this conspiracy, defendant Turner would charge a percentage of the fraud proceeds that amounted to somewhere between 20 to 40 percent of funds received.
Defendant Turner would direct fraud clients and his recruiters to pay a portion of the fraud proceeds to him personally or to entities controlled by him, or his co-conspirators, as kickbacks, including through cashiers’ checks, money transfer services, or cash.
In total, from approximately June 2020 and December 2024, the defendants and their co-conspirators submitted and caused the submission of fraudulent forms for at least 148 companies, seeking a total of approximately $247,956,938 in tax refunds to which they were not entitled.
In reliance on the fraudulent forms and the false statements, the IRS issued Treasury checks in the total amount of at least approximately $93 million.
At some point during the scheme, the now-defendants learned that the IRS and others were making inquiries about their fraudulent activity.
According to the indictment, on or about August 29, 2023, defendants Knox, Jones, and others known and unknown to the grand jury, attempted to kill defendant Kristerpher Turner in order to prevent him from speaking to law enforcement about the fraud.
Turner was shot multiple times in broad daylight at an office park in Gardena. He survived and is paralyzed. Knox and Jones are also charged with using a firearm in the furtherance of a crime of violence.
