A federal indictment has been unsealed, charging Jason Alexander Jerkins, a 36-year-old Certified Public Accountant from Franklin, Tennessee, with wire fraud, money laundering, and tax fraud. This announcement was made by Acting United States Attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee, Robert E. McGuire.
Jerkins owned Jerkins Business Solutions (JBS), a sole proprietorship offering tax preparation, bookkeeping, and payroll services since 2015. The business operated in Fairview and Nashville, Tennessee. According to the indictment, between March 2020 and October 2024, Jerkins misused his clients' bank account information to facilitate fraudulent transactions using Intuit QuickBooks software. He allegedly transferred funds from clients' accounts into accounts he controlled or accessed.
The indictment details that these withdrawals were disguised as legitimate business transactions on clients' bank statements. Jerkins reportedly initiated over four hundred wire transfers totaling more than $3.9 million from his Intuit account to his bank accounts. On at least one occasion in September 2023, stolen client funds were used to purchase residential real estate.
Additionally, Jerkins is accused of filing false tax returns with the IRS for at least two clients. These returns allegedly included false deductions and expenses not incurred by the taxpayers.
If convicted, Jerkins could face up to twenty years in prison for wire fraud, ten years for money laundering, and three years for each count of preparing false tax returns. The United States seeks forfeiture of property purchased with proceeds from the alleged fraud.
The case is under investigation by the Internal Revenue Service's Criminal Investigation division and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Mitchell T. Galloway.
It is important to note that an indictment is merely an allegation and that Jerkins is presumed innocent until proven guilty in court.