08 Mar Blowing the whistle on tax fraud

Q. I was the senior finance person for a small family-owned company. In mid-November I was given instructions to perform some tasks which, in a nutshell, are tax fraud. I couldn’t do this and I left the job. Should I blow the whistle on my previous employer to collect the reward the IRS would give? I’m not sure if I’m willing to testify if it goes to court, and I’m not sure how the owners would react.
— Help!

A. We’re glad to hear you’re honest and unwilling to commit tax fraud.

Fraud impacts not only the business, but also consumers as many costs could be passed on in the form of higher prices.

As for what you should do?

It’s really up to you.

Calling the IRS and whistleblowing on the company for a reward has to be weighed by your concern for your safety, said Bill Connington of Connington Wealth Management in Fairfield.

“It might be smarter to do it anonymously and not worry about the reward rather than have to worry about your welfare and safety,” he said. “How much money is that worth?”

If you do want to report tax fraud, you can contact Taxation’s Office of Criminal Investigation here or the IRS here.

Email your questions to .

This post was first published in March 2018.