Microsoft employee steals $460,000 from the company

REDMOND: Software giant Microsoft has reportedly sued a former director of business development in a US state court, accusing him of stealing nearly $460,000 from the company.

According to a news report in ComputerWorld, the employee Robert D Curry tried to siphon off another $1.5 million before his scheme was uncovered.

In its complaint, Microsoft has alleged that Curry created a fake company called Blu Games and submitted bogus invoices for non-existent services.

According to the report, as a director of business development, Curry dealt with companies that promoted the downloading of Bing Bar, an Internet Explorer (IE) toolbar add-on designed to boost IE use.

"On at least 3 occasions between April 19, 2010 and November 22, 2010, defendant Robert D Curry ... fraudulently induced Microsoft to pay through a vendor approximately $459,341.63 for defendant Curry's benefit, while falsely representing that the payments were for legitimate Microsoft business expenses," Microsoft stated.

Curry duped a legitimate Microsoft vendor, Pentad Solutions, into paying Blu Games for supposedly distributing the Bing Bar, then asking Microsoft for reimbursement.

Curry created fake invoices, distribution agreements and reports and also forged his manager's signatures to support his scheme, Microsoft alleged.

The company Microsoft has demanded that Curry repay the entire $459,000, and that it be awarded triple damages under the state's Criminal Profiteering Act, says the ComputerWorld report.

Curry fired on January 13, worked with Microsoft for some five years