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Francisco Paz, 35, of Leesburg, Jose Paz, 41, also of Leesburg, and Raul Ascencio, 43, of Manassas, had stolen $257,086 from Beckstrom Electric, starting back in December 2020, according to the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office.
The trio falsified timesheets for fake employees through a third-party temp agency, police reported.
When the electric company notified law enforcement of potential embezzlement, police found that two of the company's employees conspired with the owner of R Gonzales Sheet Metal, LLC and 3RG and Systems, LLC to pay workers that never existed, officials said.
Police said they also discovered that the same men stole scrap copper from job sites and sold it to local scrap metal dealers for a total of $46,823.
Francisco Paz and Jose Paz were both charged with felony embezzlement, felony forgery, and other related offenses, authorities said.
The third suspect, Ascencio, was charged with two counts of obtaining money by false pretenses and two counts of felony conspiracy to commit larceny, officials reported.
The two Paz men were released from the Loudoun County Adult Detention Center on a $5,000 secured bond, whereas Ascencio was released on a personal recognizance bond, according to law enforcement.
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