A federal grand jury returned a 16-count indictment Wednesday against the owner of a former internet service provider in Reno in connection with an alleged embezzlement from a federal grant project.
Stephen A. Kromer, 48, of Uprise, LLC, is charged with felony counts of embezzlement of government property, federal program theft, money laundering and presenting a false document, all in connection with his alleged embezzlement of more than $7.8 million from a federally funded high-speed internet construction project near Lovelock, according to a U.S. Department of Justice release.
According to court documents, Kromer owned Uprise in 2022 when it applied for a federal grant under the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s ReConnect Program, proposing to construct a $36 million internet project that would provide access to high-speed internet to users living or working in rural Lovelock, about 100 miles northeast of Reno.
As part of the funding, Uprise agreed to contribute $9 million toward the cost of the project. In June 2023, the USDA awarded Uprise a $27 million ReConnect grant to fund the Lovelock Project and required Uprise to deposit its $9 million share of the funding into a separate financial account called the Pledged Deposit Account that restricted withdrawals to payments for costs of the Lovelock Project as approved by the USDA.
According to the indictment, Kromer embezzled about $7.8 million of funding from the Lovelock Project by withdrawing the funds from the account and depositing them into his personal bank account via 32 wire transfers he made from the account between May and November 2024.
“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.”
An initial appearance has been scheduled for June 24 before U.S. Magistrate Judge Elayna J. Youchah. If convicted, Kromer faces the maximum statutory penalty of 50 in prison on the federal theft charges and more than 100 in prison on the money laundering and false document charges.
The FBI and USDA Office of Inspector General investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Steven Myhre and Skyler Pearson are prosecuting the case.
Contact Tony Garcia at tgarcia@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0307. Follow @TonyGLVNews on X.
