A St. Paul woman cheated the federal government out of hundreds of thousands of dollars by filing dozens of false tax returns on behalf of friends and family, assigning them various professions including exotic dancer, according to charges.

Ebony S. Yarbrough, 27, was charged in federal court in Minneapolis with nine counts of making false, fictitious and fraudulent claims and three counts of aggravated identity theft. Yarbrough has been jailed since the charges were filed last week and was scheduled to appear in court Monday, which is Tax Day for 2016 in the United States.

According to prosecutors:

From 2013 until last year, Yarbrough persuaded friends and family members to allow her to file their state and federal returns and charge less than a tax preparation service.

Yarbrough would obtain from the taxpayers their essential tax documentation as well as personal identifying information such as social security numbers, addresses and dependent information.

She would falsely claim business deductions by assigning people professions such as "hair stylist," "cleaner" or "exotic dancer."

Yarbrough also padded some of the returns by using stolen personal identification information belonging to minors and falsely adding dependents on behalf of the filers.

Yarbrough's scheme accounted for more than $500,000 in false state and federal claims involving nearly 200 returns that she prepared or assisted others in preparing and filing. Each filer paid Yarbrough anywhere from $200 to $1,000 for the return.

Yarbrough's attorney was not immediately available Monday for comment.

Paul Walsh • 612-673-4482