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Contact: Marc Kovac
press@ohioauditor.gov

Columbus – Findings for recovery of $16,404 were issued Tuesday in favor of the Village of Neville in Clermont County, after a former fiscal officer used a Village debit card for personal purchases, Auditor of State Keith Faber announced.

Lois Badgley earlier pleaded guilty to two criminal counts in the case, after the Auditor of State’s Special Investigations Unit determined she made 140 improper debit card purchases. The transactions included 126 cash withdrawals at two retailers totaling $11,300 and $3,956 in miscellaneous purchases, including shopping/gift cards, prepaid phone cards, food, beverages, medicine, personal hygiene products, pet supplies, books, magazines, and clothing.

Badgley was indicted in Clermont County Common Pleas Court in August of 2019 and pleaded guilty in January of 2020 to felony counts of theft in office and tampering with records. She was sentenced to five years of community control and ordered to make restitution, with the potential for up to 72 months in prison if she violates the court’s orders.

The findings for recovery announced Tuesday against Badgley were included in the Village of Neville’s regular audit for calendar years 2018 and 2019. The $16,404 total, which includes audit costs, has been partially repaid.

Since 2019, the Special Investigations Unit has assisted in 82 convictions resulting in more than $2.7 million in restitution (Map of SIU Convictions Since January 2019: https://ohioauditor.gov/fraud/convictions_map.html). The team receives hundreds of tips of suspected fraud annually. Tips can be submitted anonymously online or via SIU’s fraud hotline at 1-866-FRAUD-OH (1-866-372-8364).

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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 Keith Faber, the office also provides financial services to local governments, investigates and prevents fraud in public agencies, and promotes transparency in government.