Former BOP Correctional Officer Sentenced for Larceny

On August 2, 2021, former BOP Correctional Officer and student of Alliance School of Trucking (AST) in Los Angeles County, California, was sentenced to 36 months of probation with the condition that he perform 290 hours of community service, and ordered to pay $28,975 in restitution to the U.S. Government for one count of larceny.  Fernando Velasco was charged in the Superior Court of California, County of Los Angeles.  According to court records, Velasco pleaded guilty to Count 2 of the Criminal Complaint, which stated that from in or about December 2011 through in or about April 2015, Velasco and others defrauded the United States Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) of electronic and other bank transfers, checks, U.S. currency, and other payments in the approximate amount of over 4.3 million dollars.  According to the Criminal Complaint, AST recruited eligible veterans to defraud the VA of Post-9/11 GI Bill education benefits by telling veterans that they could collect benefits from the VA by enrolling in their truck driving school but not actually attending educational programs.  According to the Criminal Complaint, Velasco was one of several military veterans that fraudulently applied for and collected VA Post-9/11 GI Bill education benefits through AST.  The investigation is being conducted by the OIG’s Los Angeles Field Office, the VA OIG, and the FBI.