INDIANA— A Washington man has been sentenced to two years in federal prison for stealing over $1 million from his employer and evading hundreds of thousands of dollars in taxes.
Brandon Alford, 47, was sentenced after pleading guilty to wire fraud, money laundering, and five counts of tax evasion. In addition to his prison term, Alford will serve one year of supervised release and has been ordered to pay $1,006,500 in restitution to his employer and $319,793.02 to the IRS. U.S. District Judge Matthew P. Brookman imposed the sentence following an investigation by the FBI and IRS.
According to court documents, Alford worked as a service writer for a heavy equipment supplier in Indiana from 2017 to 2023. His role involved acting as a liaison between customers and service providers. In 2017, Alford devised a scheme to defraud his employer by creating a fake company, A&D Distributing LLC.
Alford convinced a local machine parts retailer manager to sell parts to his employer through this fictitious company. He claimed responsibility for handling logistics, including shipping the parts to his employer, while the retailer invoiced the company for parts and an added profit margin.
Between December 2017 and January 2023, Alford submitted 25 fraudulent invoices for never-ordered or delivered parts to the retailer. The retailer transferred $939,500 to A&D Distributing’s account through 22 wire payments. Subsequently, the retailer invoiced Alford’s employer, resulting in the employer paying $1,006,500 for non-existent parts.
In addition to the fraud, Alford failed to report the income from the scheme on his tax returns for the years 2017 to 2022, resulting in a tax loss of $253,459.
U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana, Zachary A. Myers, stated, “This defendant abused his position of trust and professional relationships to steal a million dollars from his unsuspecting employer, cheat on his taxes, and cover up his crimes.”
Ramsey E. Covington, Special Agent in Charge of the Chicago Field Office of IRS-Criminal Investigation, added, “Tax evasion and financial fraud undermine trust and hurt real people. Brandon Alford’s fraudulent scheme caused significant harm to his employer and evaded taxes owed to the government. IRS-CI will continue to work tirelessly with our law enforcement partners to hold criminals accountable for their actions.”
