A Silver Spring man who previously worked for the Peace Corps has been arrested and charged with allegedly defrauding the government and lying to federal agents, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland announced Wednesday in a statement.
“Public service is a public trust, and that trust is broken when government employees falsify records or otherwise [engage] in fraudulent behavior,” U.S. Attorney Kelly Hayes said in the statement.
Evester Edd, 64, was charged with wire fraud, theft of government funds and making false statements to federal agents, which carry a combined maximum sentence of 35 years, along with potential fines and restitution, according to the release. Edd’s attorney information was not available in digital court records Wednesday afternoon.
Edd, who served as a senior human resources official at the Peace Corps, allegedly worked simultaneously as a federal employee and a contractor, submitting falsified timecards to multiple agencies and misrepresenting the amount of work he performed. As a result, he was allegedly “double billing for tens of thousands of dollars,” the release said.
Prosecutors also alleged that Edd improperly accessed, saved and transmitted confidential and agency-sensitive information more than 1,000 times and sent protected government information to commercial email accounts and personal devices.
Additionally, he allegedly made false statements on security clearance forms, including misrepresenting ties to individuals overseas, the release said. During an interview with federal investigators, he allegedly lied about electronic accounts he had created and about sending money to foreign nationals for “explicit content,” according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Wednesday’s arrest follows a year-long investigation led by the inspectors general of the Peace Corps and Federal Housing Finance Agency and other law enforcement partners, according to the statement.
Federal agents searched Edd’s home in November and seized electronic devices, the release said. Edd retired from federal service the following month while the investigation was ongoing.
“The investigation and today’s arrest underscore our commitment to pursue allegations against those who would defraud U.S. taxpayers and undermine the public trust in the integrity of the federal workforce,” Peace Corps Inspector General Joaquin Ferrao said in the release.
