Colorado Federal IT Worker Stole $1 Million From Federal Agency Through Fake Invoices
By Logan Smith | CBS Colorado
A 55-year-old Colorado man who worked for the federal government was sentenced to prison this week for fraudulently diverting approximately $1 million from his employer for personal use.
James Montoya, of Lakewood, was sentenced Tuesday to 41 months behind bars. He was also ordered to repay $1,122,009.47.
Montoya was employed as an information technology specialist for the United States Geological Survey, which has offices in Lakewood. He was hired by the agency in 1996 and started working in an IT position in 2002.
A year later, Montoya began falsifying expense reports in order to shift money to personal PayPal accounts, per case documents. The activity wasn't noticed until 15 years later. Then, in 2023, an examination of employe...

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