Las Vegas Sun

March 29, 2024

Former UNLV employees plead guilty in misappropriation of $292,000

Two former UNLV employees pleaded guilty Thursday in the misappropriation of at least $292,000 from the university for their personal benefit, according to the Nevada Attorney General’s Office.

Lina Khachekian, 35, of Las Vegas pleaded guilty to two felony counts of theft and Marissa Neuhaus, 23, of Las Vegas pleaded guilty to one felony count of fraudulent appropriation, officials said.

The charges relate to a scheme between 2011 and 2013 in which the defendants used UNLV purchase accounts to order consumer electronics for their own use or resale by co-conspirators, officials said. They created extensive and elaborate falsified documentation to conceal the purchases from UNLV management, officials said.

“The Attorney General’s Office always has and will continue to take a strong stance against abuses of public trust by state employees,” Nevada Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto said in a statement.

Each felony theft count to which Khachekian pleaded guilty to carries a potential prison sentence of one to 10 years.

The fraudulent appropriation count to which Neuhaus pleaded guilty carries a potential sentence of one to four years.

Khachekian and Neuhaus are scheduled to be sentenced in February.

Join the Discussion:

Check this out for a full explanation of our conversion to the LiveFyre commenting system and instructions on how to sign up for an account.

Full comments policy