Federal agent from Mesa loses job, pay for doing side gigs while on duty
Jan 25, 2023, 10:19 AM
(U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Photo)
(U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Photo)
PHOENIX — A federal agent from Mesa lost his job and has to repay more than $130,000 in salary because he drove for Amazon, Uber and Lyft while on duty, authorities said Tuesday.
A U.S. District Court judge in Phoenix recently ordered Sean M. Nelson, 44, to pay $133,999 in restitution to the Department of Homeland Security, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona said in a press release. He also was sentenced to two years of probation.
Nelson pleaded guilty to theft of government property in October 2022, agreeing to resign as a special agent with Homeland Security Investigations as part of the deal. HSI is the Department of Homeland Security’s principal investigative arm for global criminal enterprises and terrorist networks.
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Prosecutors say Nelson used a government-owned vehicle on his unauthorized side gigs between November 2019 and October 2021.
“As a result of the conviction, Mr. Nelson has forfeited much of his salary during the time period of his on-the-job criminal activity, and as a federal felon he’ll never lawfully possess or use a firearm ever again,” U.S. Attorney Gary Restaino said in the release.
“His dereliction of duty was a grave disservice to his hard-working law enforcement colleagues and the taxpayers alike.”
