Crime & Safety
Worcester Man Charged With Fraud
He was charged with two counts of wire fraud from his work with a Worcester employment agency.
WORCESTER, MA — A Worcester man was arrested on Friday and charged in federal court on fraud charges arising from his role overseeing UT Services, a Worcester employment agency. Tam Vuong, 43, was charged with two counts of wire fraud
According to the criminal complaint, while in his role overseeing and controlling UT Services, Vuong falsely told UT Services’ insurance carrier that the company had only one employee and an annual payroll of only $50,000, when in actuality, UT Services had dozens of employees and a significantly higher payroll. UT Services paid most of its workers in cash as part of a scheme to underreport wages, and thus fraudulently minimize its workers’ compensation insurance premium.
The company also disseminated forged certificates of insurance to several clients and underreported its payroll on various state and federal filings, according to the IRS.
According to court documents, Vuong previously operated other employment agencies, including Prime Labor Services, which had revenues of more than $25 million and also underreported its wages. Vuong shifted operations from Prime Labor Services to UT Services after federal agents executed search warrants in November 2017.
Each count of wire fraud carries a sentence up to 20 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based on the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
