ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) - A New Mexico accountant has pleaded not guilty to charges that defrauded the federal and state unemployment insurance system out of more than $1.3 million.
Prosecutors say 41-year-old Jasonn Gonzales, of Velarde, was arraigned Monday in federal court in Albuquerque.
A federal indictment charged Gonzales and a co-defendant of conspiracy, mail fraud and aggravated identity theft. Gonzales was arrested April 24 and remains in custody.
The indictment alleges Gonzales and another man schemed to defraud the New Mexico Department of Workforce Solutions, the Texas Workforce Commission and the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment by making fraudulent claims for unemployment benefits in the names of real people.
The state agencies mailed debit cards to the claimed employees at post office boxes and the defendants allegedly used them to withdraw money.
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