A federal grand jury in St. Louis, MO has accused two elderly women of stealing more than $660,000 from the North County town of Flordel Hills, where they worked as city clerks.
68-year-old Maureen Woodson and 75-year-old Donna Thompson allegedly stole by forging city checks, according to Assistant U.S. Attorney Hal Goldsmith.
“The checks required dual authorization of either the Mayor or the Treasurer and the city clerk,” Goldsmith said. “And the allegation in the indictment is that the City Clerk and the Deputy City Clerk forged the Treasurer and the Mayor’s signature on those checks.”
The women wrote approximately 614 city checks to themselves totaling more than $531,000, according to a press release. About 368 checks worth $376,026 were written to Woodson and 246 checks worth $155,329 were written to Thompson.
The indictment said the two spent “substantial amounts” of the money on gambling, and used it for rent, entertainment and to pay their taxes.
The women, who are also roommates, could face up to twenty years each in prison.