Lock Him Up Ex-IRS Consultant Took Job With Intention of Stealing Trump’s Tax Returns: DOJ Littlejohn weaponized his access to IRS database for personal and political agenda, prosecutors say
Prosecutors, pushing for the maximum sentence, argued that Mr. Littlejohn leaked the tax returns of over a thousand individuals, resulting in significant harm, including invasion of privacy and psychological distress. They charge that Mr. Littlejohn’s crime “has undermined public faith and confidence in the IRS, an institution that is critical to the effective functioning of our government.”
The Department of Justice told a sentencing judge on Wednesday that a former Internal Revenue Service (IRS) contractor took the job specifically to steal and leak President Donald Trump’s tax returns.
Washington resident Charles Littlejohn pleaded guilty in October last year to one count of unauthorized disclosure of tax returns and return information after he was accused of stealing and leaking data associated with President Trump and other wealthy individuals.
In a 15-page filing, prosecutors pushed for the maximum statutory sentence of five years in prison, arguing that Mr. Littlejohn’s betrayal of the public trust “merits significant punishment.”
Story continues below advertisement
Mr. Littlejohn had access to “vast amounts of unmasked taxpayer data” when he worked for Booz Allen, a consulting firm working with public and private clients mostly on IRS contracts, between 2008 and 2013.
After President Trump took office in 2017, Mr. Littlejohn sought to return to work for Booz Allen “with the intention of accessing and disclosing” the tax returns of the president, whom he viewed as “dangerous and a threat to democracy,” according to prosecutors.
Mr. Littlejohn “weaponized his access to unmasked taxpayer data to further his own personal, political agenda, believing that he was above the law,” prosecutors said. |
