Michael Donaher, 41, of Lakeville, a Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) employee, pleaded guilty to embezzling nearly $70,000 in VA funds. Donaher worked as an Inventory Management Specialist for the Veterans Affairs Medical Facility in Brockton and was responsible for purchasing various equipment necessary for use in the facility. Donaher conducted fraudulent transactions using his government-issued purchase cards and routed the proceeds to his personal bank account. Donaher attempted to conceal these fraudulent purchases by making it appear as if the purchases were made through a large company that the VA frequently used for legitimate business, when, in fact, they were actually made through a company Donaher created through Square, Inc., a mobile payment company. These purchases were not for actual items ever received by the VA. Furthermore, Donaher attempted to hide this fact by annotating the items as having been received within the VA’s accountability system. Donaher fraudulently routed approximately $70,000 of VA funds to his personal account since the scheme began in 2016.
