Ex-BLM employee sentenced for stealing $10,700 in government funds

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A former Bureau of Land Management employee who pleaded guilty to stealing more than $10,000 from the government was sentenced Wednesday to two years and seven months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release.

According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for Montana, Defendant Adrian Anthony Aragon of Butte, 53, will have to pay $8,600 restitution after pleading guilty in February to aggravated identity theft and theft of government money.

Aragon worked as an administrative assistant for the BLM, according to court documents, and was given a government travel card and a government purchase card to fulfill his work requirements.

An anonymous BLM employee, Jane Doe, told officials in 2022 four checks totaling $10,700 were written on a government bank account in her name without her knowledge or authorization, according to court documents. The checks were written to “cash” and were deposited into Wells Fargo accounts in Aragon’s name, where he used the funds for personal expenses, including cash withdrawals, utility and cell phone bills, restaurants, grocery stores and Amazon purchases.

Doe told law enforcement that Aragon had access to her checks during his employment and that Aragon made schedule changes resulting in him being the first or last person in the office.

Aragon used the government cards to pay for $2,500 in pottery, a $622 personal flight to New Mexico and cash withdrawals, according to the indictment in the case. The government alleged he attempted additional cash withdrawals and also tried to rent a car using the government card while on personal vacation. Aragon tried to cover his tracks by doctoring the statement on the card for the pottery and the flight, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

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