We Jin Shon, 25, a Canadian who worked for Morgan Stanley in the UK as an investment banking analyst, has been sentenced to 1½ to 4½ years in prison for stealing more than $US572,000 (₤276,500) from the US state tax department and trying to steal another $US4.64m by filing for bogus tax refunds.

Shon, who pleaded guilty on Tuesday to grand larceny and attempted grand larceny, was also ordered to repay the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance $US282,863, Associated Press reports.

Barbara Thompson, a spokeswoman for the Manhattan district attorney's office, said Shon tried to get refunds totalling $US5.2m by electronically filing 30 false state personal income tax returns from March 18 through April 27.

Samuel Gregory, Shon's lawyer, said his client was a young man ‘who got himself in debt in amounts he was incapable of paying and made a terrible mistake’.

Further reading:

US tax officials nabbed in $US16m scam

KPMG US tax shelter case postponed

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