(NationRise.com) – An employee with the Internal Revenue Service is facing serious charges after he allegedly siphoned millions of dollars from the federal government.
Rodney Quinn Rupe, a former employee of the IRS, stands accused of a sophisticated financial crime. He allegedly set up a fictitious business, Ex Xo Exteriors LTD, and used his position to create an Employer Identification Number. This allowed him to redirect over $2 million of tax credits, originally intended for ExxonMobil, to his own company. The credits were then applied to his company’s 2019 account, resulting in a total refund of just over $2.1 million, including interest payments.
The Treasury Department then issued the multi-million dollar check. The 46-year-old went on to visit several banks in an attempt to deposit the money. He is now facing charges related to mail, wire, and bank fraud. He is scheduled to appear in a Salt Lake City court on July 3rd.
Rupe began devising his scheme in 2021 while working as an account manager for the agency. Trina A. Higgins, a US attorney for the District of Utah, announced his indictment. Multiple agencies are still investigating the incident.
The news comes as the IRS teeters on the brink of financial collapse. Danny Werfel, the agency’s commissioner, said the $60 billion additional funds it received in 2022 is not enough to continue its operations over the next few years. That money was initially intended to fund the agency through 2031 as it hired tens of thousands of new agents. Werfel already said the agency is preparing to gut its customer service department, but told Congress an additional $104 billion will be needed to continue funding through 2034. He never discussed how the funds were depleted so fast.
The agency has blatantly refused to remediate thousands of known vulnerabilities within its systems and processes. Many of those vulnerabilities have been exploited multiple times in the past. Agency officials claim remediation would hinder its ability to offer speedy mitigation.
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