On the afternoon of October 24, 2011, Hillsborough County (Tampa, FL) sheriff’s deputies responded to a report of shots fired between two housing duplexes. They found Michael Massaline on the ground; Massaline later died at the hospital from his injuries. He had been shot twice in the upper body.
Two weeks later, deputies announced the arrest of Jason Jamar Whitfield. It wasn’t Whitfield’s first arrest. Records indicate that he had previously been arrested on a laundry list of charges since 2004 including Disorderly Conduct, Possession with Intent to Sell, Attempted First Degree Felony Murder, Reckless Driving, and Driving Without a License.
It also wasn’t his last arrest.
Authorities announced this month that they were filing additional charges against Whitfield who currently sits in jail on charges of second-degree murder. Police allege that Whitfield used Massaline’s identity after his death in order to file a fake tax refund. Whitfield is also accused of using the identities of fellow inmates to file fraudulent tax refunds.
It is thought to be the first time an inmate in the area has been charged with tax and refund fraud committed while inside the jail. Whitfield allegedly orchestrated the fraud from his cell, offering detailed instructions to an individual outside the jail on how to commit tax fraud. The instructions were not only oral but also written – awfully brazen, considering. But police say that such confidence among identity thieves is not uncommon and is getting worse.
Tampa is a hotbed for tax refund fraud, prompting the IRS to consider information sharing with local police. Fraud of this sort is thought to reach in the billions.
