A worker at a Department of Veterans Affairs facility in Massachusetts has been charged with stealing nearly $70,000 in government money through fraudulent purchases made with a mobile payment app, federal prosecutors say.Michael Donaher, 41, of Lakeville, was charged Tuesday with embezzlement and theft of public money, property or records. He was released following an initial appearance in U.S. District Court in Boston. A message was left with his public defender.Donaher is responsible for making purchases of equipment needed at the Veterans Affairs Medical Facility in Brockton, authorities say.He made fraudulent purchases using his government-issued credit cards and routed the proceeds to his personal bank account, prosecutors said. He concealed the fraudulent purchases by making it appear as if they were made through a large supply company the VA frequently used for legitimate business, when, in fact, they were actually made through a company with a similar name Donaher created through the mobile payment company, prosecutors said.Donaher has been working at the VA since 2010 and the payment scheme has been going on since 2016, federal authorities said.He faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted.

A worker at a Department of Veterans Affairs facility in Massachusetts has been charged with stealing nearly $70,000 in government money through fraudulent purchases made with a mobile payment app, federal prosecutors say.



Michael Donaher, 41, of Lakeville, was charged Tuesday with embezzlement and theft of public money, property or records. He was released following an initial appearance in U.S. District Court in Boston. A message was left with his public defender.


Donaher is responsible for making purchases of equipment needed at the Veterans Affairs Medical Facility in Brockton, authorities say.

He made fraudulent purchases using his government-issued credit cards and routed the proceeds to his personal bank account, prosecutors said. He concealed the fraudulent purchases by making it appear as if they were made through a large supply company the VA frequently used for legitimate business, when, in fact, they were actually made through a company with a similar name Donaher created through the mobile payment company, prosecutors said.

Donaher has been working at the VA since 2010 and the payment scheme has been going on since 2016, federal authorities said.

He faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted.