A tax preparer from Longview, Texas, has pleaded guilty to federal charges related to a tax fraud scheme. The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Jay R. Combs for the Eastern District of Texas.
Marneitha Reese Scott, 57, of Gilmer, entered her plea before U.S. Magistrate Judge K. Nicole Mitchell on February 18, 2026. She admitted to conspiracy to aid, assist, counsel, or advise in tax fraud.
Court documents revealed that Scott owned and operated F.A.S.T. Financial Firm (FAST), which had two locations in Longview. She and others recruited tax preparers to work at these businesses and instructed them to file fraudulent income tax returns for clients. This included making false claims such as business losses for clients who did not own businesses.
According to prosecutors, “Scott created a scheme to defraud the United States by instructing the tax preparers to create fraudulent entries on client tax returns, including, for example, claims for business losses when the client had no business.” The returns were filed either by Scott herself or employees acting under her direction.
The IRS determined that Scott’s actions resulted in a known tax loss of $243,899 between 2019 and 2022.
Scott now faces up to five years in federal prison along with possible fines and restitution payments. Sentencing will be set after presentence investigations are completed by the U.S. Probation Office. The actual sentence will be determined based on advisory guidelines and statutory factors.
The Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation is handling the investigation while Assistant U.S. Attorney Alan Jackson is prosecuting the case.
