Haitian tax preparer in Florida gets 3 years for fraud, loses citizenship bid

A Haitian-born tax preparer based in Port St. Lucie, Fla., has been sentenced to 36 months in federal prison after being convicted of running a “massive tax fraud scheme.” Prosecutors say Wislet Metayer, 45, also lied on his application for U.S. citizenship about the fraud.

U.S. District Judge Donald M. Middlebrooks handed down the sentence on Feb. 11, according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida. In addition to prison time, Metayer must pay $167,792.45 in restitution.

Ron Loecker, Special Agent in Charge of the IRS Criminal Investigation, added that Metayer’s actions harmed honest citizens.

“When you turn tax forms into tools for bogus refunds, you’re stealing from every honest taxpayer,” Loecker said. “Metayer chose to cheat the system and even lied in a bid for citizenship. A jury saw through it, and the court delivered accountability.”

Clients abused without knowing it 

Between 2019 and 2025, Metayer filed dozens of false federal income tax returns, according to the prosecutors. He added fake business losses, deductions and credits to his clients’ forms — often without them knowing — just to increase their refunds and justify his high fees. U.S. Attorney Jason A. Reding Quiñones, of the Southern District of Florida, said the inflated refunds cost the U.S. Treasury more than $175,000.

“Fraud in our tax system and dishonesty in our immigration process will not be tolerated,” Quiñones said in the press release. 

While his tax fraud was still active in March 2024, Metayer applied to become a naturalized U.S. citizen. Prosecutors say Metayer was asked under oath if he had ever committed a crime for which he had not been arrested. He said no, hiding the fact that he was currently defrauding the IRS.

It is unclear if Metayer’s naturalization application was still pending at the time of his conviction or if U.S. citizenship was stripped after the conviction.

As a result of his conviction, Metayer’s life in the U.S. is coming to an end. Because he is still a Haitian national, Metayer will be subject to removal from the U.S. back to Haiti after completing his prison sentence.

The Haitian Times reached out to Metayer’s lawyer for a comment and the pending deportation, but they did not respond. Quiñones’ office did not respond to messages seeking to clarify whether the deportation was triggered specifically by the immigration fraud conviction or if U.S. citizenship was ever granted.

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