A Washington contractor who claimed he was too injured to work despite reportedly running his own construction company was ordered to pay back the state more than $127,000.
Daniel Joseph Lesieur, of Washougal, pleaded guilty to felony second-degree theft for stealing workers’ compensation benefits from the Washington State Department of Labor & Industries.
Besides ordering restitution, Clark County Superior Court Judge Suzan Clark sentenced the 54-year-old to 30 days of electronic home monitoring.
Lesieur reportedly deceived medical and vocational providers and lied on official forms to take nearly $121,000 in wage replacement payments and more than $6,200 in vocational training services from January 2019 to October 2021.
At the same time, Lesieur continued to operate his construction business, Elk Ridge Custom Homes Inc., collecting more than $370,000 for work in the Portland and Vancouver areas, according to L&I.
The Washington State Attorney General’s Office prosecuted the case based on an 18-month investigation by the L&I.
Lesieur reportedly filed an injury claim with L&I after hurting his left shoulder shoveling asphalt while working on a road crew in 2018. In the spring of 2020, L&I began an investigation into Lesieur after discovering he had been a principal or owner with several construction businesses in the past, according to charging papers.
Investigators say that six weeks after filing his injury claim, Lesieur signed a contract to perform consumer construction projects for a national home improvement and building materials chain. He wrote in the application that the business had a crew and annual sales revenue of $1.5 million.
More than 15 customers, mostly in the Portland and Clark County areas, told investigators that Lesieur personally provided bids or home remodeling services on behalf of the national retailer. The chain paid his company more than $216,000 from 2019 to May 2021 to perform work for those and many other customers, according to L&I.
During the same period, a separate company reportedly paid Lesieur’s business more than $155,000 to modify and retrofit mobile home foundations.
Lesieur never informed L&I, nor his medical or vocational providers, about his company or its $370,000 in income.
Topics Workers' Compensation Washington
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