(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) The former IRS consultant responsible for the illegal disclosure of former President Donald Trump’s tax records has been sentenced to five years in federal prison for the heinous crime, federal prosecutors announced on Monday.
Charles Littlejohn received the maximum statutory sentence, a decision described by Judge Ana Reyes as a response to an “egregious” crime, according to Politico. The outlet reported that Reyes condemned Littlejohn’s actions, describing them as “an attack on our constitutional democracy.”
Reyes emphasized: “When you target the sitting president of the United States, you’re targeting the office and when you’re targeting the office of the president of the United States, you’re targeting democracy — you’re targeting our constitutional system of government.”
Attorney for Charles Littlejohn speaks after the ex-IRS contractor who leaked Trump’s tax returns sentenced to 5 years pic.twitter.com/U0VGzgHJcO
— Howard Mortman (@HowardMortman) January 29, 2024
In October 2023, Littlejohn confessed to providing Trump’s private tax returns of Trump to the New York Times and ProPublica, both known for their biased coverage of conservatives. He pleaded guilty to one count of unauthorized disclosure of tax return information.
“Charles Littlejohn abused his position as a consultant at the Internal Revenue Service by disclosing thousands of Americans’ federal tax returns and other private financial information to news organizations,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri.
“He violated his responsibility to safeguard the sensitive information that was entrusted to his care, and now he is a convicted felon,” Argentieri added. “Today’s sentence sends a strong message that those who violate laws intended to protect sensitive tax information will face significant punishment.”
Littlejohn worked at the IRS from 2017 until 2021. Federal prosecutors said that he used “broad search parameters designed to conceal the true purpose of his queries.” He then “uploaded the tax returns to a private website in order to avoid IRS protocols established” to detect potential violations.
Between August and October 2019, Littlejohn funneled the documents to the Times, which subsequently published anti-Trump pieces in September 2020. Littlejohn also stole the tax returns of “thousands of the nation’s wealthiest individuals.”
“Leaker of Trump Taxes Worked for Biden Beltway Donor That Just Won a Big New IRS Contract”
“The Internal Revenue Service recently awarded a lucrative contract to help modernize its computer databases to the same Washington firm, Booz Allen Hamilton, that employed the man who… pic.twitter.com/WxBCfwqbXh
— Donald J. Trump Posts From His Truth Social (@TrumpDailyPosts) November 22, 2023
