James Montoya, a former federal employee from Lakewood, Colorado, has been sentenced to 41 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to one count of wire fraud. In addition to his prison term, Montoya will serve three years of supervised release and must pay restitution totaling $1,122,009.47.
Montoya was employed at the United States Geological Survey (USGS), which is part of the Department of the Interior. According to court documents, the Department of the Interior discovered questionable transactions on Montoya’s government charge card during a routine review. Investigators found that over approximately fifteen years, beginning in December 2008 and continuing through November 2023, Montoya concealed improper purchases by submitting altered receipts and fictitious invoices to claim they were for IT-related items or services. In reality, many purchases were personal items such as vintage toys and car parts.
“Stealing from the federal government is stealing from hard-working American taxpayers,” said United States Attorney for the District of Colorado Peter McNeilly. “Our office will vigorously prosecute these types of crimes on behalf of American taxpayers.”
Katherine Balestra, Special Agent in Charge at the U.S. Department of the Interior Office of Inspector General, stated: “Our investigative staff used data analytics and ingenuity to identify this longstanding, ongoing scheme, which defrauded American taxpayers out of over $1 million over many years. The judgment in this case is a strong deterrent for others looking to perpetuate this type of scheme.”
United States District Judge Philip A. Brimmer presided over the sentencing hearing.
The investigation was conducted by the U.S. Department of the Interior Office of Inspector General. Assistant United States Attorney Sonia Dave prosecuted the case.
Case Number: 24-cr-248-PAB
