Hiam Hmaidan, age 53 of Oak Lawn, a tax preparer for Horizon Tax Service Inc., was arrested May 8th on a six-count indictment charging her with mail fraud and conspiracy to commit mail fraud. She pleaded not guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Maria Valdez and was released on a $100,000 recognizance bond.
Allegedly, from May 2020 to December 2022, Hmaidan and others conspired to use personal information obtained from other individuals to fraudulently apply for unemployment insurance benefits from the Illinois Department of Employment Security. This was the period where Unemployment had been “enhanced”, and was the equivalent of a $30K annual salary.
According to the charges, the online applications submitted by Hmaidan used false employment information, false information regarding whether the claimant was unemployed as a result of the pandemic, and false contact information for the claimant.
Once approved, IDES sent unemployment funds via preloaded debit cards to Hmaidan and other co-conspirators. They then withdrew cash from ATMs or transferred the money to other accounts.
“In total, Hmaidan and her co-conspirators filed … over 700 fraudulent UI claims with the IDES and stole at least approximately $10 million of UI benefits meant to help unemployed persons during the COVID-19 pandemic,” states the indictment.
The Illinois Auditor General, in a report issued back in 2023, found that IDES paid out over $5.2 billion in overpaid unemployment benefits during the first 18 months of the pandemic, with a large portion attributed to fraud. That overpayment included $6 million paid to 481 deceased individuals and $40.5 million in checks to incarcerated individuals, according to the report.
Let me leave you with this…
What the indictment didn’t say was anything about was where they got the names and Social Security Numbers that were necessary to file the 700 claims in the first place. But I’ll bet you dimes to donuts that the majority used were her tax clients at the Horizon Tax Service, Inc.
Hmaidan at one point, was registered as the company’s president.
I’d also bet that this is just the tip of the iceberg. Once IDES comes in, they generally refer cases up to the State and the Feds.
If this fraudulent tax preparer had a scheme stealing for herself, she probably helped her clients do the same.
This matter has to have been referred into OPR, The Office of Professional Regulation. The main way that OPR polices our profession is by getting tips like this, and initiating their own case by auditing five suspected returns completed by the offender.
If they find that the preparer “aided in the perpetuation of a fraud” on those returns, they’ll then audit all of the returns completed by the office. Who signs your return has everything to do with whether or not you’ll spend a summer being grilled by The Feds.
Choose wisely.
We’re all going to get through this. Let’s get through it together.
Accounting Solutions Ltd. stands ready to complete our mission and purpose of protecting you, your family, and your business. Whether you need Payroll Services, or Accounting and Tax Work, you have but to ask. I’m here and I remain,
Sincerely yours,
Chris Amundson
President
Accounting Solutions Ltd.
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