Mid-Prairie business manager charged with theft

The Washington County Sheriff's Department has charged Cindy Steege, former business manager for the Mid-Prairie and Keota community school districts, with second-degree theft, a Class D felony.

According to Washington County Attorney Larry Brock, charges were filed July 8 and a warrant for her arrest was issued then as well. Brock declined to comment on the details of the case because the criminal case is ongoing.

According to the criminal complaint, Steege admitted to using approximately $6,884 of Mid-Prairie district funds for personal purchases and bill payments between Oct. 23, 2012 and Feb. 21, 2014.

Mark Schneider, superintendent of the Mid-Prairie and Keota districts, said that money was connected to the district's general fund and charged on a Mid-Prairie credit card.

'We believe that it's confined to the credit card, yes, but until the state auditor's office concludes their investigation, we just don't know,” he said. 'Obviously (restitution) will be something the school board will be discussing.”

The superintendent also said Steege, a North Liberty resident, submitted her resignation from her positions in April and her last day was June 12. According to a release issued by Superintendent Schneider July 9, Steege was hired as Mid-Prairie's assistant business manager in 2009 before being promoted to business manager the following year for both districts.

Cherie Westendorf is now the Keota district's business manager while Jeff Swartzentruber has taken that role in Mid-Prairie.

'Prior to June 12, there was no suspicions that anything was amiss,” Schneider said. 'It was a voluntary leave on her part. The irregularities weren't discovered until well after she left our employment.”

Schneider said that Mid-Prairie staff subsequently conducted an internal investigation, which did not indicate involvement of any other district employees, before notifying the sheriff's department and the state auditor's office.

Tami Kusian, deputy state auditor in the performance investigation division, said the state auditor's office will look into both Mid-Prairie and Keota given Steege's roles in both districts. Preliminary work is already underway, Kusian said, with field activity likely to begin later this month.

'As with any investigation that we do, we'll look at the individual's responsibilities and the areas the individual had access to,” she said. 'In a small district, the business manager typically is involved in all the financial activity.”

Brock said information on scheduling a preliminary hearing for Steege is not yet available.

'If we find additional theft there's always the possibility that there will be additional charges, but with this case I don't know,” Kusian said. 'It's just too early to know. That would be up to the county attorney and law enforcement to decide.”

Schneider's news release stated that the district discontinued the use of credit cards earlier this month.

l Comments: (319) 398-8273 or meryn.fluker@sourcemedia.net