Investigators say that during her term as the elected Monroe County auditor, Amy Gerstman made at least $11,101 in personal purchases on her county-issued Visa credit cards.
Monday morning, a special prosecutor charged 43-year-old Gerstman with seven felonies: six counts of theft and one count of official misconduct.
The allegations:
• That on Oct. 16, 2010, she spent $98.38 at CATO women’s clothing store.
• That on Nov. 22, 2010, she purchased a Delta Air ticket for personal travel to Key West, Fla., for $532.80.
• That on Nov. 23, 2010, she paid $384.24 to Expedia for hotel accommodations in Key West.
• That on Jan. 7, 2011, she charged her $25 Indiana University Alumni Association membership dues to the county.
• That on Aug. 14, 2011, she paid her children’s $1,800 Harmony School tuition through PayPal.
• That on Jan. 26, 2011, she submitted a claim for $2,592.75: $1,097.75 to Expedia for airfare and three nights at the Residence Inn by Marriott in Times Square in addition to $1,495 to Cornell University in New York City for a communications seminar she never attended.
The county commissioners approved and paid that claim, which cleared the balance on the card, but later learned the charges were not listed on the credit card statement. Gerstman reimbursed the county for that amount in November 2011, and sent a letter apologizing to taxpayers “for the confusion surrounding the claim and for allowing personal expenditures on the county credit cards.”
The final count alleges she is guilty of official misconduct because the thefts happened while she was performing her duties as the elected auditor.
A State Board of Accounts audit released in June 2012 revealed the financial irregularities. Since then, special prosecutor Barry Brown, along with Monroe County Sheriff’s Department Detective Jennifer Allen, have spent months reviewing the financial records which ultimately led to Monday’s charges.
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