TOLEDO, Ohio — A former employee of a Jackson Hewitt location in Toledo is under investigation for allegedly obtaining and misusing certain customer information.
The former employee worked at the Broadway Street location.
Representatives with Jackson Hewitt said they're working to correct the wrongdoing, and that all clients who were impacted have been notified and identity theft protection services are being provided by the company.
In a prepared statement, Jackson Hewitt leaders said that less than 25 tax returns appear to have been impacted.
The misconduct appears to be limited to the single former employee, whose identity was not released at this time.
One of the alleged victims, Edmundo Rodriquez, claims the former employee used the social security numbers belonging to all the members of his household.
He and his wife have filed through Turbo Tax for the past four years. But this time, shortly after they filed, Turbo Tax said the return was rejected.
Rodriguez was told that someone using his social security number had already filed. They said they immediately filed a fraud claim and the IRS froze their SSN.
Now, they are not able to file their taxes and are also not allowed to collect a stimulus check or unemployment benefits, he said.
A few days after freezing his social security number, Rodriguez said he got an email from Jackson Hewitt that stated his return was accepted by the IRS, which he said is the first time he realized Jackson Hewitt may have been involved.
He said he then contacted their corporate offices, when he was allegedly told someone had e-filed using his SSN. According to Rodriguez, employees were able to determine that this had been done at the south Toledo branch on Broadway and later discovered it had been done by an employee. However, he was told that person no longer worked there.
This person allegedly used his, his wife's, and his children's social security numbers.
However, Rodriguez said that despite the trouble, the IRS has been a big help and are actively working to "save his identity."
Rodriguez said he and his wife used Jackson Hewitt five years ago, and believe that's how the ex-employee got their information.
He said they are speaking out because they want everyone who has ever used the company to be aware and that he believes there could be more victims that currently don't know their IDs have been stolen.
Rodriguez claimed that Jackson Hewitt offered him cash to help, but he declined.
Company leaders said they launched a third-party investigation and notified law enforcement and the IRS once the misconduct was discovered.
The misconduct appears to be limited to the single former employee, whose identity has, so far, not released.
A statement was released to WTOL on behalf of Jackson Hewitt:
“We recently became aware that a former employee of a Jackson Hewitt franchise location in Toledo, Ohio may have obtained and misused certain customer information. We immediately launched a third-party investigation and promptly notified law enforcement and the IRS about the situation. We are diligently working with all parties to correct the wrongdoing. All impacted clients have been notified and are being provided appropriate identity theft protection services. This misconduct appears to be limited to a single former franchise employee operating out of the Broadway Street location in Toledo and impacted less than 25 tax returns.”
This is a developing story.