MOUNTLAKE TERRACE
State investigators Wednesday, Dec. 10 searched a business they suspect over-billed the Washington Department of Labor and Industries hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Aided by Mountlake Terrace police, L and I investigators served a judge’s court order on Hispanic Voices Corp., 23907 56th Ave. W. at 10 a.m.
No one was arrested.
The company provides Spanish language interpreters for injured workers seeking worker’s compensation benefits, said L and I spokeswoman Elaine Fisher.
Pete Caw, an assistant Mountlake Terrace police chief, confirmed Dec. 12 that officers served a search warrant on behalf of L and I, which sought billing records as part of an investigation into alleged over billing.
Fisher said her agency won’t know exactly how much the company overbilled the state until its investigation is complete but she said it could be as much as $400,000.
Under the law, workers injured on the job are potentially entitled to workers compensation benefits and, if they need it, interpretation services to help them file their claim.
The company is a registered business but listed Redmond as its business address, according to state records.
Company representatives were not available for comment as the Enterprise went to press.
Hispanic Voices operated out of a single-family house. Samarita Perez bought the house in July 2006, Snohomish County Assessor’s Office records show.
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