David X. Sullivan, the United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, along with Thomas Demeo, Acting Special Agent in Charge of IRS Criminal Investigation in New England, and Jonathan Mellone, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General, announced that a federal grand jury has indicted George Davis Telford Jr., 36, from Tolland. The indictment includes eight counts related to tax and fraud offenses.
According to the indictment, Telford allegedly created fake trust entities to obtain fraudulent refunds from the IRS for supposed tax overpayments. In 2019 and 2020, he filed five false federal tax returns claiming approximately $6.2 million in refunds purportedly owed by the IRS. The IRS issued one refund amounting to $564,758 for a tax return filed on behalf of “Telford Asset Family Trust” for the 2018 tax year.
The indictment also claims that in 2022 and 2023, Telford engaged in a scheme to defraud the Connecticut Department of Labor (CT DOL) regarding unemployment insurance benefits meant for displaced workers of an entity called “High Class Grads LLC,” which he claimed to own. He submitted fraudulent claims for unemployment insurance benefits under his name and two others’, falsely stating they had been employed by High Class Grads before being laid off. CT DOL paid out $48,792 based on these fraudulent claims.
Telford faces five counts of making and subscribing a false tax return; each count carries a maximum imprisonment term of three years. Additionally, he is charged with three counts of wire fraud; each count carries a maximum imprisonment term of 20 years.
U.S. Attorney Sullivan emphasized that an indictment is not proof of guilt; charges are merely allegations until proven otherwise beyond reasonable doubt.
Currently, Telford is held in state custody due to unrelated alleged criminal activities.
The investigation is conducted by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division and the U.S. Department of Labor – Office of Inspector General. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Stephanie Levick and Susan Wines are prosecuting this case.
