South Florida has been a hotbed for the growing crime of identity theft, and that’s why Wasserman Schultz has filed legislation that would strengthen criminal penalties and increase the prosecution rate of tax return identity thieves. At the same time, her bill also stresses the need for the Department of Justice to concentrate on areas of the country where the crimes are happening in significant numbers – like in South Florida.

Imagine going to file your taxes, only to be told someone has already claimed your refund check. Several news stories have reported how criminals are stealing Social Security numbers and using them to file fraudulent tax returns. In 2011 alone, a Treasury Department’s inspector general for tax administration report found that the Internal Revenue Service found 938,664 tax returns involving identity theft and $6.5 billion in fraudulent refunds.

Rep. Wasserman Schultz hosted a news conference on Monday, April 15, which is also Tax Day, at a local Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program site, where they offer free tax preparation services for low income individuals and families. Joining Wasserman Schultz was Gwen Weinberger, a tax payer and identity theft victim who has had her tax refund stolen two years in a row.

Detective Mitchell Gordon from the Broward Sheriff’s Office Economic Crimes Division was also on hand to talk about how his office works to help identity theft victims. Francois LeConte, the President-CEO of Minority Development & Empowerment in Fort Lauderdale talked about what their office is doing to help people file their taxes by the deadline.