Former AccuWeather employee pleads guilty in federal court to defrauding company
A former AccuWeather employee benefits administrator pleaded guilty Thursday to defrauding the weather forecasting company out of thousands of dollars.
Aira Nelson, of Florida, pleaded guilty in federal court to one wire fraud charge that alleged she improperly submitted a reimbursement claim worth nearly $3,000.
That represented only a fraction of the amount she was accused of stealing.
A federal grand jury indictment released in September 2019 alleged Nelson’s fraudulent health care and dependent care claims totaled nearly $90,000.
”Although we are saddened and disappointed to have had to deal with such circumstances, we believe justice is being served,” AccuWeather marketing services director Rhonda Seaton wrote in a statement Friday.
Assistant Federal Public Defender Gerald Lord declined to comment Friday.
Nelson was accused of creating nine fictitious employee benefit accounts over a three-year period that began in September 2015.
She fraudulently authorized AccuWeather to fund accounts, rather than properly funding the accounts through payroll deductions, the grand jury wrote in its 12-page indictment. The fake accounts were then linked to her bank account.
It’s unclear when Nelson is scheduled to be sentenced. She remains free on $20,000 unsecured bail.