Preying on patriots — Scams more likely to target troops, vets

Go Navy Tax Services seemed like a great option for sailors looking for help during tax season. Situated just outside the gates of Naval Base San Diego, one of the country’s biggest Navy bases, it was local, it was convenient, it was specifically focused on helping Navy members with their taxes — and best of all, it was free.

When sailors entered the doors of the Navy-flag adorned trailer where Go Navy Tax Services was based, they found what they came for: free tax preparation. But the accountants also pushed service members to open retirement accounts. For years, Paul Flanagan and his associates at Go Navy Tax Services convinced service members who came in for tax help to open various savings accounts, providing them with all the necessary forms. They just had to fill in their personal information and sign on the dotted line.

But the nearly 5,000 applications that sailors and Marines signed didn’t actually open retirement accounts. Instead, they bought unnecessary life insurance policies — without the sailors’ knowledge — and authorized withdrawals to pay for them from the sailors’ bank accounts. In turn, Flanagan and his co-conspirators earned more than $2 million in commissions on the “sales” over nearly a decade. The service members who had signed the forms lost a combined $4.8 million.