Columbus – A conviction for tampering with records should have disqualified a former City of Struthers (Mahoning County) employee from receiving more than $800 in unemployment benefits, state auditors reported today. 

A financial audit of the city orders Angela Sharpe to repay $823 for unemployment benefits she received after the city fired her in April 2017 from her position as deputy clerk of the Clerk of Courts Office. 

Sharpe pleaded guilty in April 2018 to a first-degree misdemeanor charge of tampering with records for manipulating the billing system that the Clerk of Courts Office uses to track payments of fines and court costs. 

Auditors said Sharpe voided four transactions in the billing system, erasing evidence of payments totaling $612 that never made it to the bank. She paid restitution of $612 to the city as part of her sentence.

The Struthers Municipal Court also gave her a suspended 180-day jail sentence and ordered her to serve one year of probation and pay a $500 fine.

A full copy of this report is available online. 

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The Auditor of State’s office, one of five independently elected statewide offices in Ohio, is responsible for auditing more than 6,000 state and local government agencies.  Under the direction of Auditor Dave Yost, the office also provides financial services to local governments, investigates and prevents fraud in public agencies and promotes transparency in government.

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Beth Gianforcaro
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