The United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado has announced charges against Edward Joseph Chmiel, Henry Lozano, and Sabino Loera. The three individuals are accused of conspiracy to commit money laundering in connection with a scheme involving fraudulent invoices submitted to a contractor servicing a Colorado electrical utility.
Loera and Lozano appeared in federal court on February 10, while Chmiel is scheduled to appear later this month. According to the criminal information, Chmiel and Loera were employed by a company that provided electrical contracting services to a utility firm in Colorado. Lozano owned a separate business offering trucking and hauling services. In August 2018, the three allegedly agreed that Lozano’s company would supply these services in return for kickback payments to Chmiel and Loera.
The scheme involved submitting false invoices from Lozano’s company to those of Chmiel and Loera. Once paid for these invoices, Loera allegedly instructed Lozano to issue checks to 15 other individuals who cashed them and returned the cash to Chmiel and Loera. This operation reportedly generated approximately $1,495,781.51 in kickback proceeds between August 2018 and June 2020.
It is important to note that the charges remain allegations at this stage, with all defendants presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond reasonable doubt in court.
The investigation is being conducted by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation alongside the FBI Denver Field Office. Assistant United States Attorneys Sonia Dave and Bryan Fields are prosecuting the case.
Case Number: 25-cr-00024-RMR
