Wow– California resident Stephen McDow is facing up to four years of imprisonment after spending part of $110K that the IRS had mistakenly deposited into his account. According to reports, McDow spent $60K paying back college loans and his home mortgage and is now being charged with one felony of grand theft by misappropriation. Damn that Sallie Mae struggle!! Get the full story after the jump!
(HP)–Last September, Laguna Beach resident Stephen McDow found $110,000 deposited in his bank account, courtesy of the IRS. That same deposit has now landed him a prison sentence, according to CBS Los Angeles. (h/t The Consumerist)
The IRS mistakenly sent the tax refund money, meant for a 67-year-old woman, to McDow, instead, reports local news station KCAL. The Los Angeles woman reportedly failed to inform the IRS that she had closed the bank account she had filed with them, and the account number was subsequently assigned to McDow.
When the woman discovered that McDow had been the recipient of her refund, she called him and demanded her money back. McDow, in turn, offered to pay back the balance in monthly payments, as he had already spent $60,000 paying off student loans and his home mortgage. Unsatisfied with the suggested size of the monthly payment, the woman declined the offer, according to KCAL.
McDow was subsequently arrested and charged with one felony of grand theft by misappropriation of lost property. He reportedly faces four years imprisonment and is currently being held on bail for the exact amount he first received: $110,000.
