Laredo man accused of stealing from nonprofit pleads not guilty

LAREDO, Texas (KGNS) – A Laredo man has pleaded not guilty in federal court to bank fraud and wire fraud charges, accusing him of stealing funds from a local nonprofit.

Christian Ochoa, a former treasurer and board member of the Literacy Volunteers of Laredo (LVL), was indicted on October 16 for alleged embezzlement of funds. Each charge of bank and wire fraud is punishable by up to 30 years in prison.

According to court documents, Ochoa served as a board member of LVL for approximately six years and was named treasurer in 2022, where he oversaw the organization's payroll, bill payments and PNC bank account. LVL, a nonprofit organization founded in 1986, provides free literacy and language resources to adults in Laredo, as well as citizenship classes for those seeking U.S. citizenship. The organization relies largely on donations from sources such as the United Way, the Lamar Bruni Vergara Trust, the Guadalupe & Lilia Martinez Foundation, the Dollar General Literacy Foundation and local third-party funding from the City of Laredo and Webb County.

Court documents allege that Ochoa fraudulently transferred funds from the LVL account to his personal CashApp account and made numerous unauthorized transactions, resulting in a loss of over $150,000. Investigators allege he used a mobile device to transfer funds between financial institutions and allegedly made over 200 individual transactions using LVL funds for personal financial purposes.

Only LVL's board chair and treasurer have access to the organization's bank account, and purchases over $500 require board approval. As treasurer, Ochoa was responsible for managing the organization's finances, a position he held on a volunteer and unpaid basis.

Ochoa was arrested on October 17 and released the following day. He has denied all allegations and is awaiting further legal action.

For more headlines click here.

Copyright 2024 KGNS. All rights reserved.