Former Employee Admits To Stealing Nearly $10 Million From Employer Over 19 Years – June 4, 2020
James Camp admitted that from April 1998 through November 2017, he defrauded Lubrizol Corporation of $9,256,712.54. During the scheme, Camp submitted fraudulent invoices for laboratory services from two companies he owned, knowing they had not been performed.
https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdtx/pr/former-employee-admits-stealing-nearly-10-million
Former Administrator / Supervisor Of Illinois Department Of Vehicle Services Charged For $340,000+ Fraud Scheme – June 4, 2020
Candace Wanzo was responsible for operation of the public service center where vehicle owners may pay title and registration fees, apply and pay for license plates, and make sales tax payments related to the sale of vehicles.
Wanzo stole title and registration fees and sales tax payments. Wanzo allegedly concealed the theft of title and registration fees by replacing stolen funds with title and registration fees from other vehicle owners.
From March 2015 to April 2017, Wanzo misapplied approximately $303,649 in title and registration fees to conceal title and registration fees that she had previously stolen. Also in October 2015, Wanzo allegedly changed the policy of not accepting cash for sales tax payments and directed staff to begin accepting cash for the sales tax payments. Staff were directed to deliver the cash to her at the end of the day in a yellow envelope.
Former Director Of Finance Sentenced To 3 Years In Prison For $348,000+ Of Embezzlement – June 3, 2020
Brian Scalabrino, who was the former Director of Finance for Metal Standard Corporation of Holland, Michigan, altered his payroll records to show a negative federal income tax withholding amount for most pay periods. This fraudulently raised his income so that his net income exceeded his reported gross income. He used this method to fraudulently increase his annual pay by approximately $50,000 each year.
https://www.justice.gov/usao-wdmi/pr/2020_0603_Scalabrino
Former United Auto Workers (UAW) President Pleads Guilty To $1 Million In Embezzlement – June 3, 2020
Gary Jones served as the President of the International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace, and Agricultural Workers of America (“UAW”).
Jones admitted to conspiring with at least six other high-level UAW officials in a multi-year conspiracy to embezzle money from the UAW for the personal benefit of Jones and other senior UAW officials. Between 2010 and 2018, Jones and other UAW officials submitted fraudulent expense forms seeking reimbursement from the UAW’s Detroit headquarters for expenditures supposedly incurred in connection with leadership and training conferences. Jones and his co-conspirators used the conferences to conceal the hundreds of thousands of dollars in UAW funds spent on lavish entertainment and personal spending for the conspirators such as; golf clubs, private villas, golfing apparel, green fees at golf courses, and high-end liquor and meals costing over $750,000 in UAW funds. Jones used UAW money to purchase over $13,000 in cigars for the use of high-level UAW officials.
Former Accountant Sentenced To Prison For $620,000+ Embezzlement Scheme – June 3, 2020
From 2015 through 2019, Beverly Cross worked at MicroFab as its accountant. Cross abused her position of trust as the company’s accountant to embezzle funds from MicroFab. Cross falsified payroll data and other company documents to pay herself unearned salary amounts and undue expense reimbursements over a four-year period. During the last two years of her fraud scheme, the average monthly amount of money she embezzled from the company totaled around four times her monthly salary. Cross bought a car from another MicroFab employee for her son, but stole the precise amount of money from MicroFab to purchase the car. Cross’s fraudulent actions resulted in a loss of approximately $620,000 to MicroFab and caused a considerable negative impact to the company and its employees, many of which suffered salary reductions, and two of which lost their jobs.
Former Employee Sentenced To Prison For Stealing Over $100,000 From Employer – June 3, 2020
William Harvey was employed by LA Imaging (“LAI”), a medical services company that preformed mobile imaging services. He was employed by LAI to maintain and repair x-ray equipment used by LAI in its medical imaging business. His duties included purchasing equipment and supplies to maintain LAI’s imaging equipment, Harvey had access to LAI’s credit card and bank account information. Between December 2012 and October 2014, Harvey embezzled company funds from LAI through a scheme in which he illicitly transferred money to himself using numerous PayPal accounts, including accounts under the fictitious names of “Global Imaging” and “CFA.” In order to support his scheme, Harvey presented fake invoices to LAI from Global Imaging and CFA.
Between September 2013 and October 2015, Harvey also defrauded LAI by opening a rival imaging company called Southern Elite Imaging. Through Southern Elite, Harvey contracted with Cenla Occupational Medicine Services and leased older x-ray equipment owned by LAI to Cenla, without LAI’s consent.
Former U.S. Postal Service Employee Pleads Guility To Stealing Nearly $40,000 In Postal Money Orders – June 2, 2020
Between July 2017 and December 2018, Keith Sanford was employed by the U.S. Postal Service and worked on a rotating basis at the Granby, West Granby and East Hartland Post Offices. Between April and December 2018, Sanford issued 139 postal money orders totaling $39,937.02 to himself and, in certain instances, his associates, without remitting payment for them. Sanford received all of the proceeds from this scheme. embezzlement
Former U.S. Postal Service (USPS) Postmaster Sentenced To Prison For Stealing $7,000 In Government Funds – June 2, 2020
Adam Lavertue began working the USPS in April 2008 and became Postmaster of the Groton Post Office in June 2015. Lavertue performed a variety of managerial and administrative tasks to facilitate the daily operations of the Post Office, including maintaining the facility’s operational functions, handling customer transactions and managing mail clerks and delivery staff. In February 2017, Lavertue began using the purchase charge card issued to the Groton Post Office to make over $500 in personal purchases, including food, beverages and tobacco products. Additionally, Lavertue used Post Office Voyager cards, which are used by USPS mail couriers to fuel the official USPS delivery vehicles, to fuel his personally owned vehicle, charging over $5,000 in fuel. Lavertue also stole over $1,000 in cash from his assigned cash register drawer and reserve at the Groton Post Office. Lavertue’s scheme cost the USPS approximately $7,000. embezzlement
https://www.justice.gov/usao-ma/pr/former-groton-postmaster-sentenced-stealing-government-funds
Former Employee Admits To Stealing And Selling His Employer’s Confidential Information – June 2, 2020
Timothy Young was employed at a data analytics and risk assessment firm based in New Jersey. The company serves customers worldwide, including entities providing insurance and financial services as well as government entities. The company maintains a network that houses, among other things, significant amounts of personally identifiable information.
Without the firm’s approval, Young obtained confidential, non-public information that belonged to the firm. The information included names, logon names, passwords, email addresses, and telephone numbers for some of the company’s clients. Young then attempted to sell the information/
Financial Controller Pleads Guilty Of $3.5 Million In Bank Fraud – June 2, 2020
Paul Piper served for many years as the financial controller for Lake Michigan Carferry, the company operating the SS Badger ferry between Ludington, Michigan, and Manitowoc, Wisconsin. Piper defrauded various financial institutions and Lake Michigan Carferry in an amount between $550,000.00 and $3,500,000.00, by overriding normal accounting systems and writing checks directly to himself and to two of his affiliated businesses, Piper Tax & Accounting and Piper Group. Piper either forged the signatures of company owners on these checks or used a signature stamp without the authorization of the owners. Piper hid these transactions in the accounting system by booking these checks to an insurance expense code and by otherwise making false entries to balance company accounts.
https://www.justice.gov/usao-wdmi/pr/2020_0602_Piper
Former Employee Convicted For Stealing / Embezzling $5,000 Of Federal Funds – June 2, 2020
Between January 2017 and August 2018, in the District of South Dakota, while employed as an agent of the United Sioux Tribes of South Dakota Development Corporation (USTDC), Pamela Duncan, did embezzle, steal, obtain by fraud, and intentionally misapply property worth at least $5,000, from USTDC, an organization receiving Federal funds. Duncan removed property and applied funds for personal use, such as laptop computers, gym memberships, attorney services, payroll advances, and travel reimbursement.
https://www.justice.gov/usao-sd/pr/ft-pierre-woman-sentenced-federal-program-theft
Former Supervisor Of Drug Testing Facility Pleads Guilty To Accepting Bribes To Falsify Drug Test Results Sent To U.S. Probation Office – June 1, 2020
Billy West was a supervisor a for a federal contractor that conducted court-ordered urinalysis drug testing of individuals who are on federal probation and supervised release. His responsibilities included administering urinalysis drug testing.
West admitted that, between June 21, 2018, and March 19, 2020, he misled U.S. Probation Officers through a scheme to solicit and accept payments from individuals in exchange for reporting a false negative drug test to the U.S. Probation Office. The scheme caused over 100 false reports to be made to the U.S. Probation Office.
Professor Of International Studies Pleads Guilty To Over $2 Million Money Laundering Scheme – June 1, 2020
In November 2017, Professor Bruce Bagley began receiving monthly deposits of hundreds of thousands of dollars from bank accounts located in Switzerland and the United Arab Emirates. Each month, Bagley would receive a deposit of approximately $200,000 from the overseas accounts. He would withdraw approximately 90% of the funds in the form of a cashier’s check, payable to an account held by another individual. He would send the remainder of the funds to his personal account. Between November 2017 to October 2018, received approximately $2.5 million from the overseas accounts.
The overseas accounts belonged to a Colombian individual. who stated the funds represented the proceeds of foreign bribery and embezzlement stolen from the Venezuelan people.
https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdny/pr/professor-international-studies-pleads-guilty-money-laundering
Former U.S. Postal Service Employee Sentenced To Prison For Embezzling Postal Funds – June 1, 2020
Christina Gregory admitted that, from April through May of 2019, she was employed as a Postmaster Relief; and during that time, she knowingly embezzled funds from her USPS cash and stamp drawer and unlawfully converted USPS money order funds to pay for her own personal expenses. She intentionally converted and used $2,851.64 of USPS funds.
Former Office Manager Sentenced To Prison For 10 Year / $600,000 + Health Care Fraud – May 29, 2020
From August 2007 to December 2016, Karina Moore was employed as the office manager at a skilled nursing facility. The facility was originally Marquis Care of Shaw Mountain, but it was sold in May 2016 and renamed Shaw Mountain of Cascadia (SMC). In December 2016, employees at SMC called law enforcement after discovering checks showing that the Moore had embezzled $23,805.66. The investigation revealed Moore had been defrauding the Shaw Mountain care facility since at least January 2010. Between January 2010 and December 2016, Moore defrauded health care programs and social security programs, resulting in a loss of $611,860.86.
Moore used multiple schemes to cover her fraud. She embezzled the residents’ private payments and social security payments, including from their resident trust accounts. She fraudulently billed Medicaid for services that were covered by other health care benefit programs, and failed to report payments to Medicaid, causing overpayments, which she then embezzled. Finally, Moore collected and misused the social security checks of a deceased resident.
https://www.justice.gov/usao-id/pr/eagle-woman-sentenced-37-months-health-care-fraud
Nurse Anesthetist Sentenced To 3 Years In Prison For Drug Tampering And Diversion Scheme – May 29, 2020
Christopher West was a certified nurse anesthetist (CRNA) at a hospital. From February 2018 through September 7, 2018, West used his State of Iowa nursing licenses to gain access to two controlled substances, fentanyl and sufentanil, at the hospital. The fentanyl and sufentanil was intended for patients at the hospital, but West used them himself. In order to avoid getting caught, West perforated tamper-proof paper around the vials, carefully opened the vials, replaced the drugs in the vials with saline, glued the vials shut, and placed the vials back in the hospital’s secure dispensaries in the surgery and birthing centers.
Husband And Wife Working At University Arrested For Wire Fraud Involving Department of Energy Grant – May 29, 2020
Shaorong Liu and Juan Lu were employed at the University of Oklahoma Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry. Liu and Lu also controlled a company, MicroChem Solutions (MCS). Through MCS, they applied for and received federal grant monies from the Department of Energy. The mission of the grant program was to support scientific excellence and technological innovation through the investment of federal research funds in critical American priorities to build a strong national economy. The affidavit alleges Liu and Lu spent this grant money on matters unrelated to the purpose of the grant funding, including on personal expenses.
Former Healthcare Executive Sentenced To 6+ Years In Prison For Massive Healthcare Fraud Scams – May 29, 2020
Semyon Narasov was a former NextHealth and Forest Park Medical Center executive.
Narasov admitted that Forest Park paid him and his business partner, Andrew Hillman, $190,000 to refer patients to the facility or to surgeons with privileges there. He and Mr. Hillman submitted phony invoices to conceal the bribes, which were funneled through Adelaide Business Solutions, a shell entity.
Mr. Narasov also admitted that while at NextHealth, he and Mr. Hillman submitted fraudulent claims to private and government health insurance providers – seeking reimbursement for prescriptions that were medically unnecessary, prescriptions for misbranded, non-FDA-approved drugs, and prescriptions prescribed by physicians who were receiving kickbacks, all while falsely claiming they had charged patients co-pays.
https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndtx/pr/nexthealth-forest-park-executive-sentenced-6-years
Former Treasurer Sentenced To Prison For Stealing $400,000 In City Funds – May 29, 2020
Venita Sedodo was the former Treasurer of Velda City, Missouri.
From November, 2015 to October, 2018, Sedodo schemed to steal approximately $400,000 from the city. Sedodo issued approximately 90 unauthorized Velda City checks to herself, which she deposited into several of her personal bank accounts. Sedodo spent the stolen funds on personal items and services such as clothing, automobile payments, as well as making numerous cash withdrawals. Sedodo also issued unauthorized Velda City checks directly to a number of businesses to pay for personal items and services. Sedodo made numerous unauthorized ACH wire transmissions of funds from Velda City bank accounts to pay for personal items and services at businesses such as BMW, Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue, and Commerce Bank to pay off charges on her personal credit cards.
Former Veterans Administration (VA) Nurse Pleads Guilty To Stealing Controlled Drugs From VA Urgent Care Clinic – May 28, 2020
While working as a registered nurse at the VA Medical Center Urgent Care Clinic, Jolie King used her to access the clinic’s narcotics supply cabinet and retrieve vials of controlled substance medications that were intended for the treatment of patients. King admitted that she used the drugs for her own personal use. King also admitted that she would log into the narcotics supply cabinet, randomly select a patient’s name, and then withdraw the drugs without a physician’s orders. In one instance, in an attempt to avoid detection, she refilled two vials with saline solution and placed them back in the supply cabinet. From September 2017 to October 2018, she fraudulently acquired approximately 31 vials of Hydromorphone and two vials of Morphine.
Former Employee Pleads Guilty To Stealing Trade Secrets From General Electric Company – May 28, 2020
Yang Sui admitted that between 2015 and 2017, he stole multiple electronic files pertaining to the research, design, and manufacture of silicon carbide MOSFETs (Metal-Oxide Semiconductor Field-Effect Transistors). Silicon carbide MOSFETs are used in a variety of GE’s parts and products, including aviation equipment and wind turbines.
https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndny/pr/niskayuna-man-pleads-guilty-stealing-trade-secrets-ge
Turkish Army Civilian Employee Leaked Secret Documents on Turkey’s Military Aid To Georgia – June 1, 2020
Banu Yurdusev was working as a civilian expert in the Directorate for Logistics. It was discovered that she was a mole leaking secret documents to a gang.
Yurdusev was indicted on multiple charges for leaking classified documents as well as her involvement in a gang that used sex to obtain classified information and engaged in invasion of privacy, extortion, blackmail, prostitution and organized crime activities. In total 357 suspects including 55 active duty officers and numerous retired officers were indicted when the prosecutor filed criminal charges against the gang in 2013.
Former IT Administrator Sentenced To Prison For Sabotaging Network Causing More Than $800,000 In Damages – May 30, 2020
Charles Taylor sabotaged his employers network by changing router passwords and shutting down a critical command server. After resigning from his job in July 2018, This caused more than $800,000 in damage to his former employer, which had to replace several routers and rebuild and restore its internal computer network.
Taylor had worked for his company since 2013. In 2018 the company was acquired by another company. Taylor kept his job as a senior systems engineer after the merger, but he became unhappy with the owners of the now combined company and resigned in July 2018.
Former Regions Bank Employee Steals Over $100,000 – May 28, 2020
The Federal Reserve’s Board of Governors has banned a former Regions Bank employee who pleaded no contest to stealing more than $100,000 from one of the company’s customers to pay off the mortgage of another, the agency announced. An investigation by Regions found that Matthew Curtis stole more than $110,000 and used those funds to pay off the private mortgage of another Regions customer. Curtis did not appear to have a connection to the mortgage holder. The mortgage holder actually had the mortgage denied by Regions but Curtis altered loan documents to make it appear that the mortgage was approved.