NY Comptroller reports significant increase in fraudulent state tax refunds

According to State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli's office, it blocked over 12,000 fraudulent refunds worth $43.7 million as of the start of the week.At the same time last year, DiNapoli's office had only identified $24 million in spurious refunds.Most of the incorrect returns consist of claiming too many dependents or too little income. So far, it is not clear if the increase in fraudulent returns is due to an increase in mistakes or cheating, or if the state is getting better at catching them.DiNapoli says that each year his staff uncovers more elaborate tax schemes which forces them to increase the use of sophisticated data-driven methods in order to expose them.Like 1010 WINS on Facebook and follow @1010WINS on Twitter to get breaking news, traffic, and weather for New York City.