TEMPE, Ariz. — Arizona State University's former information technology manager is accused embezzling more than $120,000 to make over 800 unauthorized purchases, according to the auditor general's office.
A criminal indictment was filed against Carlos Urrea earlier this month, charging the former ASU employee with forgery, theft and fraud.
The charges were filed after auditors discovered Urrea had allegedly used the university's funds for several personal items that included gift cards, multiple smartwatches, a treadmill, row machine, two Christmas trees and a dozen gaming consoles.
Urrea, who provided IT services to ASU's executive administrators and president's office, allegedly told investigators he knew the expenditures were "very dumb" but argued he was trying to provide for his family.
According to the audit report, Urrea allegedly used his ASU purchase card to make 810 unauthorized purchases between 2017 and 2021. He's accused of covering up the fraud by digitally altering receipts or lying about what the expenditures were for.
By December 2021, auditors started to notice that Urrea's receipts appeared to be forged. He was placed on administrative leave and later terminated in March 2022. Not long after Urrea's termination, ASU was given approval to raise its tuition.
In total, auditors suspect Urrea embezzled up to $124,000.
The auditor general's office faulted the ASU administrators for not detecting the alleged fraud sooner by not enforcing their own policies. Urrea's actions were allegedly able to go unnoticed, in part, because he was allowed to make p-card purchases without obtaining prior approval, bypass the procurement process, or submit receipts late.
"Since our investigation began, ASU officials reported to us that they made p-card-related improvements by directing
Executive Administration employees to use the procurement process for IT purchases whenever possible," the audit report states.
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