Former parks employee pleads guilty to theft

A former parks and recreation employee pleaded guilty to theft charges after the stole more $15, 000 from the department during the last fiscal year.

Dosha Plummer, 36, was indicted for theft by unlawful taking this summer, months after she resigned from the department and made full restitution.

The thefts were discovered during an audit of Winchester-Clark County Parks and Recreation for the 2016-17 fiscal year. That audit uncovered a number of issues including overdue bills, credit card debt and a deficit of nearly $159,000.

In Clark Circuit Court Thursday, Plummer pleaded guilty to theft by unlawful taking less than $10,000, a reduction from her original charge of theft over $10,000. According to the plea agreement, Plummer would be sentenced to the minimum of one year on Dec. 6.

Plummer told Clark Circuit Judge Jean Chenault Logue that she would take checks written to the department and cash them at the bank before the funds would be directly deposited.

According to the indictment, this went on for nearly two years.

Parks and Recreation board chairman Charles Eury said previously the funds were repaid and the employee, who was not named at the time, was allowed to resign. The department did not pursue criminal charges against her.

“The auditors were able to catch it,” Eury said at the time. “It was not something we could have caught.”

After the City of Winchester, which partially funds the department, became involved in the situation, a copy of the audit was turned over to Winchester Police to investigate, which led to the indictment. The city also insisted on an outside company to take over managing the department’s financial aspects.

Plummer was allowed to remain free on bond until her sentencing hearing.

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