Iowa Employment Agency Owner Pleads Not Guilty to Fraud Indictment

The owner of a Des Moines, Iowa, employment agency has pleaded not guilty to federal fraud charges.

Dinesh “Dan” Sethi is accused of scheming to defraud insurance companies out of workers’ compensation premiums.

Sethi, of Ankeny, owns DES Staffing Services. The indictment charges him with five counts of wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office says Sethi created two other companies that he represented as being separate from DES Services and transferred the majority of his employees to those other companies to avoid rising workers’ compensation premiums.

The Des Moines Register says the federal magistrate set a tentative trial date of April 4. If convicted, Sethi faces up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

DES Staffing has offices in five states.

Information from: The Des Moines Register