Law & Courts News in Brief

Ex-Treasurer of Ark. School Group Pleads Guilty to Stealing Money

By The Associated Press — May 12, 2009 1 min read
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The former treasurer for a parent-teacher organization in Bentonville, Ark., has pleaded guilty to stealing from a fund for an elementary school and has been sentenced to 10 years in prison.

Heather Diann Jennings, 32, was ordered last week to also pay $20,000 in restitution. Bentonville police arrested Ms. Jennings in 2007 after finding she allegedly stole $23,000 from the Sugar Creek Elementary School’s organization.

Bank statements showed that Ms. Jennings wrote checks to her husband and to Home Depot, Radio Shack, Discovery Store, and other stores where the organization did no business. Also, a number of cash deposits were missing, including $6,000 from fundraisers.

A version of this article appeared in the May 13, 2009 edition of Education Week

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