LOS ANGELES – A Hollywood man who allegedly submitted more than $65 million in false claims to the IRS contending a nonexistent farming business was entitled to pandemic-related tax credits was in federal custody Friday on federal charges.
In an indictment returned May 11 and unsealed Friday, Kevin J. Gregory, 55, was charged with 17 counts of making false claims to the IRS. Federal prosecutors said Gregory attempted to claim funds under a federal “employee retention credit” offered to small businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Between November 2020 and April 2022, he allegedly submitted bogus claims to the IRS for nearly $65.4 million in refunds under the retention credit, citing a sham Beverly Hills-based farming and transportation company known as Elijah USA Farm Holdings, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Gregory wound up receiving more than $2.7 million from the IRS, and he used those funds for personal expenses, prosecutors said.
Gregory was arrested Thursday and scheduled to appear in federal court in downtown Los Angeles Friday afternoon.
If convicted, Gregory could face up to five years in federal prison for each count, prosecutors said.
