A former Washoe County Department of Alternative Sentencing chief is scheduled to make his initial court appearance today after being indicted for allegedly embezzling more than $55,000 in federal grant funds.
Justin Roper, the department's former chief, is accused of taking $55,593.52 in federal grant money between November 2024 and December 2024, according to allegations in the indictment.
The Department of Alternative Sentencing received approximately $1.3 million in grant funding from the Bureau of Justice Assistance, a Justice Department component. Prosecutors allege Roper took a portion of those funds for himself.
Roper faces one count of federal program theft. If convicted at trial, he could receive a maximum statutory sentence of up to 10 years in prison. A federal district court judge would determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
"Public service is a public trust, and violating that trust for personal enrichment degrades the integrity of our civic institutions,” said First Assistant United States Attorney Sigal Chattah for the District of Nevada. “The Department of Justice, alongside our federal and local law enforcement partners, remains deeply committed to rooting out public corruption through our Public Corruption Strike Force and ensuring that federal tax dollars are used for their intended public benefit, not to line the pockets of government officials."
The United States Secret Service investigated the case.
“The U.S. Secret Service was founded to protect our nation’s financial system, and we’re dedicated to continuing that honorable, important work as part of our agency’s dual mission,” said Special Agent in Charge Karon Ransom for the United States Secret Service Las Vegas Field Office. “The theft of federal funds will not be tolerated, and we’re proud of the work done by our special agents to investigate this serious crime. We’re grateful to the partner agencies that worked tirelessly with us on this case so that justice can be served and a critical message can be sent: if you steal from the federal government, you will be caught and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”
The case is part of the District of Nevada's Public Corruption Strike Force, which operates within the Office's Criminal Division. The unit handles allegations of criminal misconduct involving government integrity, including bribery of public officials at all levels of government, election crimes and other related federal offenses.
The Strike Force includes Assistant United States Attorneys with extensive public corruption experience and works with federal, state, and local agencies across Nevada.
