Reno business owner Stephen A. Kromer pleaded guilty Tuesday to one count of federal money laundering for embezzling more than $7.8 million from a U.S. Department of Agriculture grant project, according to a Department of Justice news release. Kromer owned Uprise, LLC, a former internet service provider that received a $27 million federal grant in 2022 through the ReConnect Program to build a high-speed broadband network in Lovelock, about 100 miles northeast of Reno.
As a condition of the grant, Uprise agreed to contribute approximately $9 million toward the project, funds obtained from the State of Nevada and held in a designated account overseen by the USDA. From May through November 2024, Kromer transferred more than $7.8 million from that account to his personal bank account and falsely recorded the transfers as project expenditures.
“Through multiple fraudulent schemes, the defendant clearly exploited trust to line his pockets,” Christopher S. Delzotto, special agent in charge for the FBI Las Vegas Field Office, said in the release. “The grants were intended to enhance broadband infrastructure in rural communities in Nevada. Instead, the defendant brazenly misappropriated these funds for personal gain.”
Kromer faces a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in prison and is scheduled to be sentenced March 9.
Sources: Las Vegas Review-Journal
Original reporting: Las Vegas Review-Journal →
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