City of Phoenix investigating fraud-related crimes within its department

By KNXV Staff

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    PHOENIX (KNXV) — Two cases of fraud within the City of Phoenix have been turned over to the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office for possible criminal charges.

City officials discovered two separate cases of potential fraud with three employees, according to a news release from the City of Phoenix.

The first case involves a firefighter who is accused of receiving paychecks from the city, even though he allegedly did not show up for work in a year or more. According to a Phoenix Police Department investigation, the employee was paying others to cover his shifts while he operated his own business. The employee’s supervisor was reportedly aware of the actions.

In the second case, police investigated a city employee for allegedly defrauding $70,000 in funds from the Emergency Rental Assistance (ERA) program. Officials say the employee falsely helped relatives receive approval for ERA funds.

Following an investigation, the employee resigned from their position and will be required to pay back the funds, which will be returned to the federal treasury, according to the news release from the city.

The Phoenix Police Department has recommended charges to MCAO for all three people involved, including the firefighter’s supervisor.

No other details have been provided.

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