Tax clients hand over the kind of information most people would not give to anyone else: Social Security numbers, business records, tax documents, and sometimes money meant to go straight to the IRS.
In Scott County, Iowa, that trust became part of two criminal cases against Latisha Collier, a former Love After Lockup cast member who operated Boss Tax and Accounting Services in the Davenport area.
Collier, 39, was sentenced to 15 years in prison for forgery and 15 years for second-degree theft, according to WFLX. The sentences will run at the same time, leaving her with a 15-year prison term.
One case involved nearly $9,000 a client gave her for an IRS payment. The other involved a different client’s identity, Social Security number, and tax documents being used to obtain a rental home after Collier’s own housing application was denied.
The 15-Year Sentences Came From Two Client Cases
Collier pleaded guilty to second-degree theft in the tax-payment case and forgery in the housing case. WFLX reported that she must serve at least three years before she is eligible for parole, with credit for time already spent in custody.
She remained in the Scott County Jail after sentencing while awaiting transfer to the Iowa Correctional Institution for Women in Mitchellville. Her reality-TV background gave the case a wider audience, but the prison term came from financial crimes involving people who had used her tax and bookkeeping business.
A Client’s IRS Money Was Never Sent
One of the cases started with a client who hired Collier to prepare a tax payment. It is the kind of job that can look routine from the outside: a client owes money, gives the preparer the amount due, and expects the payment to reach the government.
That is not what happened, according to court records cited by KWQC. The client provided $8,788 for federal and state tax payments, but investigators said Collier kept the money instead of sending it to the IRS and state tax agencies.
The client discovered the problem after the IRS began adding penalties for the unpaid balance. Prosecutors later charged Collier with felony theft after police seized business records and electronic devices, according to the station.
Another Client’s Identity Was Used for a Lease
The forgery case came from a different client relationship. Police said Collier applied for housing in March 2024 and was denied, then submitted another application months later for a home in LeClaire using someone else’s information.
The application included the client’s identification, Social Security number, and tax documents, according to KWQC. Police said Collier also signed the housing lease with that person’s identity.
That part of the case is especially uncomfortable for anyone who has ever sent a tax preparer a full packet of documents and hoped the files would be handled properly. Investigators said Collier had been the victim’s business and tax accountant for about 10 years, giving her access to both personal and business information.
Clients Need More Than a Good Feeling About a Tax Preparer
A tax preparer can be friendly, local, recommended by someone else, or familiar from years of work. None of that replaces basic safeguards when someone is handling tax records, business books, payments, Social Security numbers, and identity documents.
The IRS says paid tax return preparers must have a Preparer Tax Identification Number, or PTIN. The agency also advises taxpayers to choose someone they can reach later if the IRS has questions and to keep copies of returns and records.
Clients should avoid handing over money for tax payments without proof of where it went. A preparer should be able to provide a written invoice, payment instructions, copies of filed returns, confirmation numbers, and receipts showing that tax payments were actually submitted to the IRS or state agency.
People who believe a preparer failed to send a tax payment, misused documents, filed without permission, altered a return, or kept records from them can report preparer misconduct to the IRS. If personal information was used to rent housing, open accounts, sign documents, or create debts, victims should also preserve the lease, application records, tax documents, messages, payment records, credit reports, collection notices, and any police report connected to the identity theft.