A former employee of Texarkana-based Trumble Construction Inc., operating as RBT Construction Inc., has been indicted for allegedly embezzling over $260,000 through fraudulent invoices in 2020 and 2021. Dezmann Joseph Rice faces six counts of wire fraud in the Texarkana Division of the Eastern District of Texas. Rice, who managed water tank restoration projects, is accused of submitting fake expense reports for labor, materials, and services.
The indictment claims Rice scammed Trumble Construction out of $260,230 between January 2020 and March 2021. He appeared for arraignment last Friday before U.S. Magistrate Judge James Boone Baxter, where his attorney, Heath Hyde, entered not guilty pleas to all charges.
Judge Baxter released Rice on a $20,000 unsecured bond, and the jury trial is set for July before U.S. District Judge Robert Schroeder III. If convicted, Rice could face up to 20 years in federal prison for each count of wire fraud.
