Man who lied about having children to rip off the tax system is jailed

A man has been jailed for 1 year 4 months after claiming money from Inland Revenue for five children that weren’t his.

Roland Maurice Ranger from Wellsford used a fake name and false information to receive Working for Families tax credits.

Patrick Goggin, Group Manager Investigations and Advice for Inland Revenue said the case was a warning to anyone thinking they could beat the rules and get away with it.

“Ranger, who also calls himself James Tyson, was aware of his tax obligations,” said Mr Goggin. He knew his actions were wrong but still continued to lie.”

Ranger fraudulently obtained an IRD number under the fake name of ‘Roland Maurice Grainger.’ In 2005, and for the next six years, he used it to get the maximum amount of Working for Families tax credits for five children that weren’t his and who had left New Zealand in 2005.

“By claiming more than $120,000 of tax credits he wasn’t entitled to, Ranger persistently denied hard-working New Zealanders money that pays for essential services like schools and hospitals,” said Mr Goggin.

Between 2004 to 2006 and 2008 to 2012, Ranger also used the fake name and IRD number to claim unemployment benefit despite still filing income tax returns.

“New Zealand trusts taxpayers to do the right thing, and most do,” said Mr Goggin. “Ranger intentionally ignored the rules and cheated those who work hard and contribute towards society,” he said.

Ranger’s payments were immediately stopped when Inland Revenue identified the deception through its work with other government agencies.

“Our tax system is one of voluntary compliance and the majority of tax payers do the right thing,” said Mr Goggin. “If you deliberately break the rules, there are consequences.
“Those who abide by the system can be confident we take every action to catch and punish those who cheat,” he said.

He was sentenced today at North Shore District Court having pleaded guilty to two counts of providing false information in order to obtain a refund or payment of tax.

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