A Hermantown man accused of taking home about $91,000 in unearned overtime and racking up thousands of dollars worth of personal purchases on his employer's credit cards made an initial appearance in Douglas County Circuit Court last week.
Daniel Aaron Nelson, 39, faces two felony counts of identity theft for financial gain and one felony count of fraudulent writings.
According to the criminal complaint:
Nelson began working for the Superior branch of FABCO, a Caterpillar equipment and engine dealer on Moccasin Mike Road in 2003 and was promoted to service coordinator in 2004.
At that point, he was able to approve his own work hours. Although the foreman at the Superior branch verified Nelson only worked eight hours a day, the Hermantown man submitted overtime hours that netted him from $5,000 to $19,000 per year.
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In addition, Nelson began signing off on the company's credit card statements for Target and Menards in 2007. He was given permission to charge an occasional candy purchase to the cards, but they were not for personal use.
A large Target bill in February led branch supervisor Garin Velin to look into the matter further, and he noticed what appeared to be excessive charges on FABCO's Menards card for items including DVD, food and lamp merchandise. About $28,800 in unauthorized purchases were found on the business' Target card and another $16,000 on the Menards card, according to the complaint.
When his employment was terminated, the complaint stated, Nelson said, "I can't explain it; you caught me."
Nelson was released on a $250,000 signature bond. His next court appearance is Sept. 12.
