EVANSVILLE- Tonda Avery, 55, of Evansville, has been sentenced to one year and one day in federal prison, followed by one year of supervised release, after pleading guilty to five counts of Aiding and Assisting in the Preparation and Presentation of a False and Fraudulent Tax Return. Avery was also ordered to pay $1,318,455.43 in restitution. This case was brought as part of the Trump Administration’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud.
According to court documents, Avery operated Diversity Tax Service (DTS) in Evansville, Indiana. Avery prepared federal income tax returns for clients and employed other tax return preparers at DTS. Between 2020 and 2021, Avery prepared and filed approximately 123 tax returns containing false Forms 7202, causing a total tax loss of $965,203.
Form 7202 allowed eligible self-employed individuals to claim refundable tax credits for certain periods in which they…
THE ISUZU MOTORS PAYROLL FRAUD (GQEBERHA, SA)
Date: February 16, 2026 Perpetrator: Natasja Slabbert (42)
Case Description: In a case that hit home for the Eastern Cape business community, Natasja Slabbert, a payroll administrator at Isuzu Motors South Africa’s Struandale plant, was arrested for an alleged R10.5 million fraud. The scheme, which began surfacing in late 2024, exploited the very systems designed to manage employee compensation. Slabbert allegedly manipulated payroll records to create false entries that appeared as legitimate deductions and contributions on employee payslips. In reality, these “deductions” were being diverted into her personal bank account.
The fraud was only uncovered after diligent employees noticed that their net “take-home” pay was significantly lower than expected, despite the gross amounts on their payslips remaining high. Following a thorough probe by the Hawks’ Serious Commercial Crime Investigation team and the NPA’s Specialised Commercial Crime Unit, it was discovered that in August 2024 alone, over R626,000 was unlawfully transferred. Slabbert was granted bail of R5,000 on February 17, 2026, and the case has been postponed to later in the month for further legal proceedings. This case highlights the critical need for “segregation of duties” in payroll departments, as a single point of failure allowed for the systematic siphoning of millions over nearly two years.
Link to Original: PE Express – Isuzu Payroll Fraud