Idaho man pleads guilty to COVID-related fraud, faces lengthy prison sentence

A Meridian man has pleaded guilty to illegally profiting from the coronavirus pandemic and to fraud related to his former employment, according to a news release from the Idaho U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Douglas Wold, a former human resources manager at Fry Foods in Ontario, Oregon, developed two illegal money-making schemes while working at the food processing company, according to the release. He has pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud, one count of mail fraud and one count of money laundering.

From May to August of 2020, Wold filed payroll requests to the company for people who were not working there, and subsequently deposited the fraudulent earnings into his personal bank accounts, according to prosecutors.

Also in May 2020, a coronavirus outbreak at a Fry Foods plant in Weiser led the plant to voluntarily shut down. Wold charged his employer nearly $40,000 for a COVID-19 testing program that was conducted by a separate company at a lower cost, according to the release. Wold’s company, Hala Lallo Health, did not conduct the tests but was paid for them, and Wold deposited the money into his own account. The company that actually provided the testing was not paid, according to prosecutors.

Wold used over $69,000 of the money he obtained fraudulently to purchase a speedboat and a trailer, among other things, the release notes.

The two counts of fraud could result in up to 20 years in prison, up to a $250,000 fine and three years of probation. Wold also faces up to 10 years in prison, another $250,000 fine and another three years of probation on the money laundering count, according to prosecutors.

Wold was arrested last September by Internal Revenue Service agents, according to court records. He will be sentenced on Aug. 27.

Wold has an extensive criminal record in Idaho and has served time for felony forgery, according to court records. In 2010, he pleaded guilty to arson and was sentenced to five years in an Idaho prison. In 2012, he pleaded guilty to six counts of felony grand theft and was sentenced to four years.