Landscaping Company Employee Wanted For Stealing $75K From Business

By Sam Borcia Lake & McHenry County Scanner

An employee of a landscaping company in Volo has been charged with stealing nearly $75,000 from the business through a fraudulent return scheme, police said.

Lake County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Chief Christopher Covelli said a representative of a business in Volo came forward to report an employee theft in February 2021.

The representative said they found an employee, Julio Cruz-Barrientos, stealing over $65,000 from the business, Lurvey Landscape Supply, over a five-year period.

A thorough investigation was conducted by the financial crimes division into Cruz-Barrientos, 43, of McHenry.

Investigators found that Cruz-Barrientos was crediting his own personal credit card with various amounts through the years.

He would code returns as if they were customers returning products but they were actually fraudulent returns he created, Covelli said.

Covelli said Cruz-Barrientos stole nearly $75,000 from the business.

A LinkedIn profile appearing to belong to Cruz-Barrientos lists him as working sales for the company.

Financial crime detectives conducted several interviews and forensically audited banking records as part of the investigation.

Detectives then presented the case to the Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office.

The state’s attorney’s office approved charges of continuing a financial crime enterprise, a Class 1 Felony, two counts of theft, a Class 2 felony, and money laundering, a Class 2 felony.

A Lake County judge last Wednesday issued an arrest warrant for Cruz-Barrientos carrying a $150,000 bond.

The man is not in custody yet, court records show.

Lake and McHenry County Scanner is a local breaking news website covering issues that matter such as shootings, stabbings, house fires, kidnappings, car accidents, and more around Lake County and McHenry County.