A former Biden administration State Department budget analyst has pleaded guilty to embezzling over $650,000 in taxpayer funds through a sophisticated check-writing scheme that went undetected for two years.
Quick Takes
- Levita Almuete Ferrer, 64, wrote 63 checks worth $657,347.50 to herself and a personal associate over a two-year period
- Ferrer concealed her theft by manipulating QuickBooks records to make payments appear legitimate
- The embezzlement scheme continued from March 2022 through April 2024 before being discovered
- She faces up to 10 years in prison and has agreed to pay full restitution at her September sentencing
- The case highlights serious gaps in financial oversight of government funds under the Biden administration
Two-Year Embezzlement Scheme Finally Uncovered
Levita Almuete Ferrer, a 64-year-old former State Department budget analyst who worked under the Biden administration, has pleaded guilty to systematically embezzling over $650,000 in government funds. The scheme, which operated from March 2022 through April 2024, involved Ferrer abusing her position of authority over a State Department checking account. Court documents reveal she wrote 60 checks to herself and three additional checks to someone with whom she maintained a personal relationship, depositing all of these funds into her personal accounts.
“A former State Department budget analyst has pleaded guilty to embezzling more than $650,000 from the agency over a two-year span, according to the US Attorney’s Office in Washington, DC.” US Attorney’s Office in Washington, DC
What’s particularly concerning about this case is how easily Ferrer was able to manipulate internal financial systems without detection. Using her access to the department’s QuickBooks account, she would assign herself as the payee, print physical checks, sign them, and then deposit them into her personal bank accounts. To cover her tracks, she would later change the payee information in the accounting system to make it appear that payments had gone to legitimate State Department vendors instead of into her personal accounts.
Elaborate Concealment Methods Exposed Oversight Failures
The brazen nature of Ferrer’s criminal activity raises serious questions about the oversight of government finances under the current administration. Over the course of two years, she managed to divert $657,347.50 in taxpayer funds through a process that should have triggered multiple verification steps or audits. The fact that she could write and deposit 63 separate fraudulent checks without being caught until April 2024 points to significant weaknesses in the financial controls at a major federal department handling billions in public funds.
“She printed and signed each check and then deposited all 63 checks, which totaled $657,347.50, into her personal checking and savings accounts.” United States Attorney’s Office
Federal investigators from the State Department’s Office of Inspector General and Diplomatic Security Service eventually uncovered the scheme, leading to Ferrer’s guilty plea. As part of her plea agreement, she has committed to paying full restitution for the stolen amount and will “be liable for a forfeiture money judgment in that same amount,” according to Department of Justice documents. U.S. District Judge Christopher R. Cooper has scheduled her sentencing for September 18, where she faces a maximum potential sentence of 10 years in federal prison.
Calls for Strengthened Departmental Safeguards
The case has drawn attention to potential systemic weaknesses in government financial oversight that allowed a mid-level analyst to divert significant funds over an extended period. With tens of billions of taxpayer dollars flowing through federal departments annually, the ability of a single employee to manipulate accounting systems and bypass controls suggests that additional safeguards are urgently needed. Regular audits, enhanced verification procedures for check issuance, and stronger internal controls could help prevent similar schemes in the future.
“This case was investigated by the State Department’s Office of Inspector General and Diplomatic Security Service. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kondi Kleinman with assistance from Paralegal Specialist Sona Chaturvedi.” press release
As taxpayers continue to demand greater accountability for how their money is spent, this case serves as a stark reminder that government departments remain vulnerable to internal financial crimes. The $657,347.50 stolen represents just one instance of fraud that was eventually caught – raising the troubling question of how many similar schemes might remain undetected across sprawling federal bureaucracies where financial oversight appears to be inadequate. With Ferrer’s sentencing approaching, many will be watching to see if the judicial outcome sends a strong message about the consequences of betraying the public trust.
