Stephen A. Kromer
Introduction
Stephen A. Kromer is a northern Nevada business owner who owned Uprise, LLC, a former internet service provider located in Reno, Nevada. In 2022, the U.S. Department of Agriculture awarded his company a $27 million federal grant to construct a high-speed broadband network in rural Lovelock, Nevada, funded through the ReConnect Program. According to court documents, Kromer instead embezzled more than $7.8 million from the project between May 2024 and November 2024, moving the money into his personal bank account and falsely accounting for the transfers as project expenditures. On 27 October 2026, he pleaded guilty to one count of federal money laundering and now faces up to 20 years in prison.
Background Information
Uprise, LLC was a former internet service provider based in Reno, Nevada. In 2022, the USDA awarded the company a $27 million grant under the ReConnect Program, a federal initiative promoting high-speed internet construction in under-utilized rural areas. The money was earmarked for a broadband network in rural Lovelock, Nevada, about 100 miles northeast of Reno. As a condition of receiving the federal grant, Uprise agreed to contribute approximately $9 million toward the cost of the project — money the company obtained from the State of Nevada and deposited into a separate financial account designated solely for the project and overseen by the USDA.
The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation
Pleaded guilty; sentencing pending. Kromer pleaded guilty on 27 October 2026 to one count of federal money laundering tied to funds embezzled from the federally funded Lovelock broadband project. He has not yet been sentenced.
According to court documents, Kromer’s scheme centered on “The Lovelock Project,” the federally funded high-speed internet construction project near Lovelock, Nevada. The designated account holding Uprise’s roughly $9 million state contribution was set apart solely for the project and overseen by the USDA. From May 2024 through November 2024, prosecutors say, Kromer embezzled more than $7.8 million from the ReConnect Program by transferring the money from that designated account to his personal bank account and falsely accounting for the transfers as expenditures for the Lovelock project. The Indictment further alleged that Kromer then laundered the embezzled proceeds by subsequently moving the money from his personal bank account into accounts he held at various cryptocurrency exchanges, where the funds were converted into cryptocurrency.
On 27 October 2026, Kromer pleaded guilty to one count of federal money laundering. Under the scheme described in court documents, money intended to connect a rural Nevada community to high-speed internet instead financed his personal bank account, with project records manipulated to disguise the transfers as legitimate costs. The case remains unresolved: sentencing is scheduled for March 2027, and Kromer faces a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in prison.
The prosecution was announced amid a broader federal anti-fraud push. The release notes that on 7 April, the Department of Justice announced the creation of its Fraud Division, described as laser-focused on investigating and prosecuting those who commit fraud against the American people. That work supports the Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, a whole-of-government effort chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance aimed at eliminating fraud, waste, and abuse within federal benefit programs.
Public Reaction and Consequences
Officials reacted sharply to the plea. First Assistant United States Attorney Sigal Chattah said, “Stealing public funds intended to connect rural communities is a direct assault on the taxpayers of Nevada,” adding, “When individuals treat federal grants as personal piggy banks and hide stolen millions in cryptocurrency, they undermine public trust and rob citizens of critical infrastructure.” FBI Las Vegas Special Agent in Charge Christopher S. Delzotto said, “Through multiple fraudulent schemes, the defendant clearly exploited trust to line his pockets,” noting the grants “were intended to enhance broadband infrastructure in rural communities in Nevada” but that the defendant “brazenly misappropriated these funds for personal gain.” Alida Ceballos, Nevada State Director for USDA Rural Development, said, “This plea would not have happened without an all-of-government approach to tackling fraud,” crediting the partnership among DOJ, USDA OIG, and the FBI.
Current Status
Kromer pleaded guilty on 27 October 2026 to one count of federal money laundering in the District of Nevada. Sentencing is scheduled for 9 March 2027 before United States District Judge Richard F. Boulware II. At sentencing, Kromer faces the maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in prison; a federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. Until that hearing, no sentence has been imposed. The case was investigated by the FBI and the USDA Office of Inspector General, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Steven Myhre and Skyler Pearson.
Impact on Their Career/Life
Kromer’s guilty plea converts the allegations against him into a federal money laundering conviction, exposing him to as much as 20 years in prison when he is sentenced in March 2027. The case centers on more than $7.8 million he acknowledged moving from a USDA-overseen account meant to bring high-speed internet to rural Lovelock, Nevada. Federal officials have framed his conduct as treating a public grant as a personal piggy bank and exploiting public resources to fund a private lifestyle. With sentencing still ahead, the final consequences of his conviction remain to be determined by the court.
Sources
- U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Nevada, “Northern Nevada Business Owner Pleads Guilty to Embezzling Nearly $8 Million From a Federal Grant Project” — source