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Clerk's scandal the talk of town

8 years 6 months 2 days ago Friday, September 25 2015 Sep 25, 2015 September 25, 2015 6:13 PM September 25, 2015 in News
Source: WBRZ
By: Troy Gaulden

PORT VINCENT - A former clerk's arrest and accused theft of more than $16,000 is the talk of town Friday in the Village of Port Vincent.

Brandi Deaton faces charges of felony theft, injuring public records and malfeasance in office after investigators said she stole thousands of dollars from Port Vincent. The investigation began after a man called into the Port Vincent town hall to make sure his traffic ticket payment cleared his name. However, his receipt turned out to be fake and village leaders went digging.

Port Vincent Mayor David Carter says the village would have never known about the missing money if the resident did not call to check in.

"It's very upsetting. I mean, we're a small community and we're a close community, and it's hard to believe this actually happened," Carter said.

Investigators say Deaton lined her pockets with the village's cash during her time as assistant clerk from October 2013 to March 2015. Carter says Deaton was fired for missing too many days of work, and a month later the money turned up missing.

The mayor says the stolen $16,000 could have gone a long way for a community that is pinching pennies.

"We could use it for our community center, town hall, police department, our water well, our water company. Our water well is getting a little old. We're going to have to do some work on it," said Carter. "We could use it for a lot of things."

The village has already taken steps to make sure something like this will not happen again. Port Vincent has upgraded its receipt booklet to keep better track of payments. The mayor will meet with the State Auditor's Office next week.

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