MORA, N.M. – Mora County fired two employees after a tax fraud investigation found a $32,900 truck was listed at $25, cutting more than $1,000 in taxes.
4 Investigates looked into the case after getting a tip about problems at the Mora Motor Vehicle Division office, causing it to close in mid-July.
What started the investigation
“The short answer to that is it closed temporarily because are two full time employees in there – in mid July – lost their access to the state MVD system,” Mora County Attorney Brett Phelps said.
Phelps said the office was operated by county employees Virginia Mondragon and Nichole Martinez, who could issue commercial driver’s licenses.
“So this started back in late January – there was an anonymous report made to the Las Vegas MVD about possible issues with CDL licensure in the Mora MVD,” Phelps said.
A month later, public records show County Manager DesMarie…
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This category refers to crimes committed by employees or insiders against their own organizations. It is often the most damaging because the perpetrator has authorized access to systems.
- Asset Misappropriation: The most common form, involving the theft of company resources. This ranges from simple “skimming” (taking cash before it’s recorded) to complex schemes involving the theft of inventory or intellectual property.
- Payroll Fraud: Employees may create “ghost employees” on the system, falsify their own timesheets to claim unworked overtime, or divert salary payments to their own accounts.
- Financial Statement Fraud: Management deliberately misrepresents the company’s financial health by inflating revenue or hiding liabilities to attract investors or meet performance bonuses.