Six arrested in San Antonio in $1M payroll fraud scheme

SAN ANTONIO, Texas - Six people have been arrested in San Antonio on criminal charges related to a scheme to defraud two transportation companies of over $1 million.

According to court documents, 42-year-old Veronica Rios of Salado, 48-year-old Pedro Guillen of San Antonio, 48-year-old Mario Martinez of Von Ormy, 47-year-old Guadalupe Alsidez of San Antonio, 23-year-old Amanda Hernandez of San Antonio, and 37-year-old Maira Vargas of San Antonio defrauded the transportation companies of over $1,407,000 through a payroll scheme.

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Rios is charged with 18 counts of wire fraud and the remaining five are each charged with three counts of wire fraud, says the U.S. Attorney's office.

According to the indictment, Rios processed payroll for the companies and in 2017 started overpaying employees in exchange for some of the overpayment. To further the scheme, Rios also added non-employees to the payroll who gave her part of the payments they received.

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Rios, Martinez, and Alsidez were arrested on April 19 and are in custody pending detention hearings. Guillen, Hernandez, and Vargas were arrested on April 21 and are now out on bond.

If convicted, the defendants face a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison on each count.