Paul Joseph Welch, Wire Fraud, Washington 2025

Grimy Times Exclusive

SEATTLE, Washington – In a brazen scheme, Paul Joseph Welch, a 43-year-old Laguna Niguel, California man, allegedly stole nearly $1 million from his Seattle area employer, Algas-SDI, a Kent, Washington energy manufacturing company.

According to the indictment, Welch worked for the company from 2011 to 2024, during which time he was promoted to Information Technology Manager in 2018. The indictment alleges that as early as 2017, Welch used the company’s Amazon business account to make unauthorized personal purchases from Amazon.com, totaling at least $43,000. Welch primarily purchased electronics such as televisions, laptops, and more – all for personal use.

In 2019, Welch began using his company credit card for personal purchases through other online retailers such as Apple, Alaska Airlines, Instacart, and BestBuy. Between 2019 and 2024, those unauthorized personal purchases totaled at least an additional $60,000. The scheme really accelerated in January 2021 when Welch began making payments to himself disguised as payments to a computer services company.

Welch allegedly created a series of email addresses and payment processor accounts using a business name that was very similar to a legitimate computer services company based in Washington State. Welch then used Algas-SDI company credit cards to pay the computer services company under the guise that the company was providing IT equipment and services to Algas-SDI. However, the legitimate computer services company had no relationship with Welch and never provided any services or equipment to Algas-SDI.

The charges represent six of the times Welch emailed the company false statements or invoices purported to be from a legitimate computer services company. In all, between 2017 and January 2024, Welch secretly made at least 250 fraudulent charges for the third-party vendor he controlled, including at least 140 unauthorized purchases with retailers using the company credit card and at least 100 fraudulent purchases on the company’s Amazon account.

While Welch profited some $950,000 from his theft, the loss to Algas-SDI was approximately $982,520 due to various fees on the transactions. Wire fraud is punishable by up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Welch will be arraigned on the indictment on April 17, 2025.

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