5 imprisoned for tax fraud scheme

Federal authorities in Ohio say five people have been sentenced to prison in a scheme to file tax returns in the name of dead taxpayers to defraud the Internal Revenue Service of at least $1.7 million.

Prosecutors say four Ohioans and a Florida man were sentenced this week in Cleveland.

They pleaded guilty to various charges in March. Some of the charges included conspiracy to defraud the United States and comspiracy to commit mail fraud.

Prosecutors say co-conspirators directed refunds to Florida locations and checks generated by the returns were mailed to coconspirators in Florida.

A sixth defendant also from Ohio will be sentenced June 8.

The six were indicted in January. Prosecutors say the scheme occurred from April 2009 to at least last August. COLUMBUS —

An armored truck will arrive at the Columbus Arts Festival at 6:30 a.m. Sunday, and an off-duty police officer will stand guard over its weighty contents: 1,275 bags of pennies.

The 30-pound sacks will be distributed across Genoa Park, where more than 2,000 students and other volunteers will wait with plastic cups to be filled with the coins.

And then, one by one, the pennies will be placed along lines printed on tarps until they’re gone — all 6.3 million of them.

Organizers hope that by about 4 p.m. the lines will add up to 75 miles,