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Date: Oct. 14, 2026
Contact: newsroom@ci.irs.gov
Today, Oct. 14, 2026, the Justice Department’s National Fraud Enforcement Division (Fraud Division), along with the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), announced a nationwide series of enforcement actions targeting tax fraud.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Western District of Louisiana was a key participant in this surge effort. Between early September and today, the Fraud Division’s Tax Section and U.S. Attorneys’ Offices across the country joined forces in the Department’s first-ever National Tax Enforcement Surge. This surge of nationwide resources resulted in prosecutorial actions against 76 defendants whose alleged and proven crimes intended an estimated loss of revenue to the federal government of more than $490,000,000.
“Tax fraud is not a victimless crime — it harms employees, honest taxpayers, and business owners — and the integrity of our American system,” said United States Attorney Zachary A. Keller. “Our Office will aggressively pursue anyone who steals from their employees, evades lawful tax obligations, and undermines the public’s trust in the fair and unbiased application of our federal tax laws.”
According to the Western District of Louisiana’s indictment:
Defendant: Alicia Williams Higginbotham, Lake Charles
Indicted: Sept. 16, 2026
- Alleged conduct: Failure to account for and pay over trust fund taxes; failure to file individual income tax returns
- Alleged loss amount: Over $390,000
- Charges: 14 counts of Failure to Account for and Pay Over Trust Fund Taxes; four counts of Failure to File an Individual Income Tax Return
- Maximum penalties: Up to five years in prison for each count of the first charge and up to one year for each count of the second.
Higginbotham was arrested on Thursday, Sept. 17, 2026, released on a $25,000 bond, and ordered to surrender her passport.
According to court documents, Higginbotham managed and was also a member of a home healthcare company operating in Calcasieu Parish. She is alleged to have exercised financial control over the business and to have been responsible for collecting, accounting for, and paying over federal employment taxes. The indictment alleges that Higginbotham failed to account for and pay quarterly federal employment taxes for employees for calendar quarters from 2020 through 2023. She allegedly withheld the money from her employees’ paychecks but failed to pay it to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in an amount totaling more than $390,000. The indictment further alleges that for tax years 2020 through 2023, Higginbotham willfully failed to file required individual federal income tax returns.
The IRS – CI investigated this case. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney J. Daniel Siefker, Jr., with assistance from Paralegal Specialist Denise Duhon.
On April 7, the Department of Justice announced the creation of the National Fraud Enforcement Division (“Fraud Division”). The Fraud Division is laser-focused on investigating and prosecuting those who commit fraud against the American people. The Department’s work to combat fraud supports President Trump’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, a whole-of-government effort chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance to eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse within Federal benefit programs.
IRS-CI is the law enforcement arm of the IRS, responsible for conducting financial crime investigations, including tax fraud, narcotics trafficking, money laundering, public corruption, healthcare fraud, identity theft and more. It is the only federal law enforcement agency with investigative jurisdiction over violations of the Internal Revenue Code. IRS-CI has 16 field offices located across the U.S. and maintains an international presence through attaché posts abroad.