PICKAWAY COUNTY, Ohio — Former receipt clerk for the Village of South Bloomfield, Kelly Neal, has been issued an additional finding for recovery after she was convicted of stealing nearly $14,000 from the Pickaway County community. State Auditor of Ohio, Keith Faber, announced the finding on Thursday. Neal was sentenced in June 2020 to 16 months in prison after pleading guilty to a felony count of grand theft, following an investigation by the Auditor of State’s Special Investigations Unit (SIU), the law enforcement division of the office.
As the receipt clerk, Neal was responsible for collecting payments for income taxes, the mayor’s court fines, and planning and zoning permits, with separate receipt books, money bags, and accounting systems for each. The SIU determined that from 2010-2015, Neal failed to deposit or otherwise illegally converted or misappropriated Village funds.
As part of her sentence, Neal paid restitution of $13,970. However, state auditors identified additional funds collected but not accounted for during a review of the Village’s financial activities from Jan. 1, 2018, through Dec. 31, 2019. An audit released on Thursday included an additional finding for recovery against Neal of $1,573 in missing funds.
In addition to the missing funds, auditors identified other accounting and financial issues as part of the report. They issued a qualified opinion after noting a lack of evidence supporting the cash fund balance reported on the Village’s financial statements.
