Mr. F came to our office and retained our services in December of 2013. He had been employed by the Maricopa Integrated Health System (MIHS) in the Facilities Operations Department as a Supervisor of General Maintenance. The FBI had received a tip that, beginning on January 1, 2012 and continuing through December of 2013, Mr. F had been using his position in authority to obtain goods from vendors who contracted with the MIHS. Initially, it was thought that he had usurped $62,000 of the government’s money as follows: $7,300 in false billing for groundskeeping and concrete work; $14,900 for appliance purchases; $9,800 for HVAC tools; $5,200 for lumber purchases; $600 for paint; $18,900 in construction supplies; $4,100 from Home Depot; and $980 in goods purchased from other retailers.
The allegation was that Mr. F had developed a pattern of living beyond his means and that he was remodeling his home with government money. Because we began cooperating with the government almost immediately, over the course of the next 2 years and 3 months, we were able to trace back all of the money (which now totaled $119,600), which also helped the government fix the leaks within the system. Ultimately, it was agreed that Mr. F would plead guilty to Conspiracy to Commit Theft Concerning Programs Receiving Federal Benefits under 18 U.S.C. 371. He ultimately received a sentence of Probation with zero days in jail. Initially, he was facing over 5 years of prison time.