News 12 at 6 o'clock / Thursday, Dec. 8, 2011

AUGUSTA, Ga. -- Richmond County deputies are investigating dozens of T-Mobile employees for possibly stealing hundreds of thousands from their employer.

A T-Mobile loss prevention investigator told deputies that he believes more than 40 employees from the call center on Wheeler Road filed fraudulent claims to receive tuition reimbursement from the company.

According to the report, a former employee and current employee took information from their co-workers and fraudulently filed for tuition reimbursement money through T-Mobile. The report states reimbursements ranged between $4,000 to $5,000 per employee. The total amount of fraudulent money claimed is around $200,000.

T-Mobile says the two ringleaders received a cut of the money for their help in the scam.

"Obviously shock it would be for anybody, but like I said I don't know a whole lot about," an employee told News 12.

Another employee said: "Well when you commit fraud, you are eventually going to get caught these days."

T-Mobile issued this statement: "T-Mobile does not comment on individual personnel issues. We can say that we do not tolerate any misrepresentations concerning educational assistance expenses or any other business expenses.”

T-Mobile does wish to prosecute, but no arrests have been made thus far.

Deputies tell us some employees have been let go but did not have any details. They say some employees told company investigators that they would pay the money back.