OLYMPIA, Wash. — Safeguards called “inadequate” by state auditors enabled a former state employee to steal more than $300,000 from the Washington Employment Security Department.
In September, federal investigators arrested Reyes De La Cruz on a 20-count indictment. He’s accused of falsifying unemployment claims, taking bribes from claimants, and demanding payments from people he was able to approve benefits for.
He started working for the state’s Employment Security Department in April of 2020 when the agency was seeing a record number of claims for benefits as businesses closed amid the pandemic.
According to a state audit released Monday, De La Cruz was able to illegally access funds because of a lack of oversight.
”Their internal controls were weak,” said Washington State Auditor Pat McCarthy, who said the “tsunami” of claimants may have contributed to the problem.
“I think it was the attention to detail during that time period that just was lost. I think this is an important lesson for all of government that you can’t let up your guard when you’re dealing with public funds,” McCarthy added.
In a written statement included in the audit, the Employment Security Department said, “The E.S.D. sincerely appreciates the feedback received … and will make necessary changes to improve our internal control structure to better detect and prevent occupational misappropriation.”
In addition to De La Cruz’s case, the state lost an estimated $650 million to scammers believed to be based in Nigeria.
According to a spokesperson for the Employment Security Department, more than $370 million of those funds have been recovered.