Chicago woman sentenced in tax, child-care fraud

The U.S. Department of Justice says a Chicago woman has been sentenced to 11 years in prison for using stolen identities and other fraudulent documents to steal more than $200,000 in federal tax refunds and state child-care benefits.

The Department of Justice says 41-year-old Katrina Pierce was sentenced in federal court Monday. She pleaded guilty in January to fraud and aggravated identity theft.

The department says Pierce used a collection of stolen identities to defraud the Illinois Department of Human Services of more than $146,000 in child-care benefits between 2006 and 2010.

Pierce also filed about 180 fraudulent income tax returns from the 2006 and ‘07 tax years and collected more than $60,000 in refunds.

In addition to her sentence Pierce was ordered to pay just over $207,000 in restitution.