$644 MILLION STOLEN FROM DETR, AN INSIDE JOB?

$644 MILLION STOLEN FROM DETR, AN INSIDE JOB?

Feb 18, 2023

Rob Lauer Political Reporter

In 1997, six men pulled off what remains the biggest cash heist in the history of the United States. The robbers timed the security cameras at the Dunbar facility in Los Angeles so he could avoid them, and recruited five childhood friends to help him rob the vault. They broke in, assaulted two guards on their lunch breaks, and loaded $18.9 million into a U-Haul. They had a guy on the inside.

DETR, Nevada’s unemployment division, which is responsible for processing and paying out unemployment claims, experienced the greatest robbery in the history of Nevada. Robbers stole $644,285,814.37 not with a gun but with computers and possibly inside help.

DETR claims in their responses to 360 News’ open records request that more than $644 million was successfully stolen by thieves inputting fake unemployment claims during COVID. They claim only $114,355,425 was recovered. That means more than half a billion dollars was stolen all while people in real need couldn’t get their unemployment checks after Sisolak destroyed their jobs and called them “non-essential”.

Whats worse is DETR claims Sisolak never emailed DETR any inquiries about the thefts and that DETR never emailed him anything. Do you believe that? Then you must be a Democrat. DETR is still trying to cover up this disaster.

Was this an inside job? Right from the beginning there was massive fraud. Here are the facts:

Three years ago on July 25, 2020 the Las Vegas Review Journal reported 

“Nevada’s agency overseeing unemployment insurance suspects that anywhere between 133,748 and 185,484 possibly fraudulent jobless claims have been filed. DETR has repeatedly declined to provide any additional details on fraud or comment on the amount of money that has fraudulently been collected.”

As reported by the Independent on Nov 4, 2022,

“bypassed experienced staff in creating a strike force tasked with getting rapid results on a backlog.”

“The former head of the state unemployment system says the Sisolak administration “sanitized” public statements about the extent of fraudulent claims”

“Gaa said one of her biggest frustrations was that the administration limited what she was allowed to say about a rush of claims into the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) program for independent contractors and gig workers, even though DETR officials knew the day they opened up applications to the program in May 2020 that it was the target of a massive amount of suspicious activity.”

A former FBI agent we spoke with said the massive number of unemployment cases filed combined with the antiquated computer system and poor vetting of outside contractors created the perfect storm for insiders to steal millions of dollars from taxpayers.

Something doesn’t smell right in this whole situation. The Nevada Attorney General’s office and DETR are stonewalling, refusing to provide 360 News with details about who they’ve charged and/or convicted. DETR is still concealing details from the public even after we have a new sheriff in town, Gov. Lombardo.

360 News asked DETR for the following open records:

  1. All emails to and from Gov. Sisolak and DETR related to fraudulent COVID unemployment benefits investigations.
  2. a list of every suspected and confirmed case of fraud along with the amount fo money obtained. 
  3. A list of the all criminal case filed related to fraudulently obtains COVID unemployment benefits. 

This is what DETR responded with:

To answer your questions:

  1. Email between DETR and Governor Sisolak is zero.
  2. Fraud cases are confidential other than coordinating investigations of possible prosecutions with law enforcement.  
    1. Total fraud paid out to date:  $644,285,814.37
    2. Total fraud recovered to date:  $114,355,425.66
    3. Estimated Fraudulent Payments Prevented as of 01/30/23: $ 2,514,811,650.85
  3. This is handled by law enforcement and not by the agency.

Related Posts