An Anthony man has been arrested and charged with 69 counts of forgery after his employer accused him of embezzling over $640,000.
The investigation began over the summer after the victim, who owns a vitamin shop in Anthony, reported to the Doña Ana County Sheriff’s Office that Robert Lonsinger, 31, was suspected of stealing business checks which he fraudulently wrote to himself and deposited into a personal account. According to Lonsinger, he would deposit the checks into a bank in Anthony and then drive to Las Cruces to withdraw the money as cash. The checks were reportedly written between August 2017 and March 2019.
During the investigation, a sheriff’s detective determined that a series of 69 checks, ranging in amounts from approximately $8,000 to over $9,000 were written monthly to Lonsinger, beginning on Aug. 24, 2017. The last check was written for $9,425 on March 8, 2019.
During questioning, Lonsinger told detectives he used the money on girlfriends, trips, and gave some away to his friends.
Lonsinger was arrested Monday, charged with one count of fraud over $20,000 and 69 counts of forgery. He was transported to the Doña Ana County Detention Center where he is being held without bond, pending arraignment.
Information from Doña Ana County