Brian Carn tax fraud case has taken a new turn as federal prosecutors are now asking a Florida judge to send the popular North Carolina preacher to prison for 18 months.
North Carolina and Florida pastor Brian Carn, Jr. — the boy-preacher who’s been laying hands and filling pulpits since he was 12 — is about to trade the pulpit for a jail cell after he was busted by the feds for a decade-long tax evasion scheme that prosecutors say cost the U.S. Treasury more than $550,000. Read our earlier coverage: Prophet Brian Carn Pleads Guilty To Obstructing IRS.
In the latest development in the Brian Carn tax fraud case, court documents filed just days ago in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida lay it all out in brutal detail. Court documents filed on April 22, 2026, paints Carn as a master of deception who allegedly preached one thing in the pulpit while pulling off a classic “fake it till the IRS audit it” hustle behind the scenes.
The Lavish Lifestyle vs. the “$120K Preacher” Lie
According to the feds, Carn’s scheme kicked off in 2015 after his ministries started printing money. His original accountant prepared a 2015 tax return showing $1,451,077 in income and $606,722 owed in taxes. Apparently, Carn wasn’t feeling that number.
Instead, prosecutors say he ditched that accountant, hired a new one, and handed over a completely fabricated, backdated employment agreement claiming he was just a humble $120,000-a-year ministry employee. But the amended return filed, showed a lower income. The same fake salary figure was then used for 2016, 2017, and 2018 returns. After that, Carn simply stopped filing altogether for years 2019 through 2024.
But check this out Beatmob, while telling the IRS and his accountant he was barely scraping by on $120K, Carn was out telling luxury car dealers, real estate companies, and big-money lenders the truth about his cash flow.
In 2015, he bought a Bentley and claimed $600,000 as his annual income. Same year, applying for a Florida house loan, he said he earned $588,838.44. Then, he told Merrill Lynch his salary was between $1 million and $2.99 million.
Fast-forward to December 2024: Carn drops $213,264.19 on a brand-new 2023 Mercedes-Benz S680 and tells the lender his 2024 salary is $250,000 — enough to cover $4,312 monthly payments. Yet just weeks after pleading guilty in January 2026, he signed a 2024 tax return claiming he only made $17,425 for the entire year. Prosecutors call it “drastically underreported” and say there’s no way he believed that number — especially since he also shelled out $14,600 in child support in 2024 alone (despite previously telling probation he had no kids).
Lies, Obstruction, and a Post-Plea “Accounting Error”
It didn’t stop at fake tax returns. When the IRS came knocking for collections, Carn allegedly filled out a Form 433-A (the financial disclosure version of a probation report) claiming $0 monthly income — even though ministry funds were still flowing for his personal expenses and cash withdrawals. He conveniently “forgot” to list a house he quitclaimed to his grandmother, a fat CashApp account, an investment account, and two cars in his name.
The total tax loss was $595,989 across tax years 2015–2020.
But of course, the feds saved the best for last. Carnallegedly reoffended just 13 days after pleading guilty on January 15, 2026. On January 28, he signed that bogus 2024 return. Prosecutors say that shows he still hasn’t learned his lesson.
Even his public comments after the plea had prosecutors seemingly rolling their eyes. On a podcast the same day he copped to the felony, Carn reportedly agreed when the host called it “mere accounting errors,” replying, “Oh that, that’s all it is… It’s an accounting error.” The next day on his own YouTube channel he claimed everything was done “out of ignorance, not out of malicious intent, not trying to deceive nobody.”
The responded saying, “Of course, the truth is exactly the opposite.”
What the Feds Are Asking For — And Why
The parties already agree Carn’s sentencing guidelines call for 18 to 24 months in prison. Prosecutors are pushing hard for the low end — 18 months — plus $595,589 in restitution to the IRS. They argue prison time is the only way to deter both Carn and every other would-be tax cheat watching from the pews.
Sentencing is scheduled for April 30, 2026 in Jacksonville federal court.
Carn also is still making headlines for a viral sermon in which he told a woman to sell her house and bring him the tithe money. Read the full story here.
