Mo Money woes catch congressman's eye

NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY) - Monday afternoon, dozens of people lined the sidewalk outside Mo Money Taxes on Brambleton Avenue in hopes of receiving the tax refunds checks they'd been promised. At the Granby Street location, customers were brought into the business in groups of five to receive their checks behind closed doors. As of 6 p.m., only one person had  received a check.

The plight of Mo Money's customers caught the attention of Congressman Bobby Scott. Scott said the matter is a federal issue and he's taking his concerns to the Justice Department for action.

Together with Congressman Steve Cohen of Tennessee on Feb. 7, Scott wrote a letter the the US Attorney General , calling for an investigation of Mo Money Taxes.

The letter reads :
"Complaints by many who recently obtained the help of 'Mo Money Taxes' in filing their returns range from lack of information as to the status of their returns to outright fraudulent filings and bounced checks issued for refunds due to filers."

Scott said Congressman Bennie Thompson of Mississippi is also making an inquiry into Mo Money.

Scott is concerned about the possibility of fraud following claims that Mo Money Taxes does returns, gets money from the IRS, but doesn't pass the refund to the customer. There are possibly more than 100 claims here in Hampton Roads.

"It's fraud," Scott said. "People are suppose to get their tax refunds and they aren't getting them. That kind of fraud needs to be investigated, and rooted out, and I'll investigate it, and turn over the information to the Justice Department."

Mo Money Taxes CEO Markey Granberry is based in Memphis, Tenn. Granberry said, "The last thing we want to do is have the American people frantic like some tax company has taken their money."

Many of the checks handed out before Monday evening bounced.

"If you have checks bouncing then that is a crime by itself," Scott said.

The checks given out Monday evening were distributed after the banks closed.

On Tuesday, Congressman Scott issued this statement:

" As tax season approaches, I implore taxpayers to be aware of tax preparation scams that usually include egregious fees and clearly take advantage of taxpayers who seek assistance filing their state and federal income taxes. After learning about the numerous complaints and media reports of one company operating throughout Hampton Roads denying or delaying tax refunds to their customers, I am asking the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate this matter. I also encourage taxpayers to visit the IRS's website at www.irs.gov to learn about the IRS Free File service or to get a list of IRS-approved Free File companies."