A former Armenian “mafia” leader was sentenced to forty years in prison Friday for his role in a billion-dollar scheme to rip off American taxpayers.

Lev Aslan Dermen, aka Levon "The Lion" Termendzhyan, was convicted of conspiring with members of a polygamous sect in Utah known as "The Order" in one of the most daring tax frauds in history, the local media reports.

Dermen was found guilty after a seven-week trial of conspiracy to commit mail fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering and money laundering.

 According to the Department of Justice, court documents and testimony from Dermen's 2020 trial show that from 2010 to 2018, Dermen conspired with various members of the Kingston family to fraudulently claim more than $1 billion in refundable renewable fuel tax credits.

The IRS ultimately paid out more than $511 million in credits to Washakie Renewable Energy, a Utah biodiesel company owned by Jacob and Isaiah Kingston.

In addition to the prison sentence, Dermen was ordered to pay $442,615,520 in restitution to the IRS and imposed a money judgment of more than $181 million against him.

Top Photo: ABC7