A former meals service director for Harvey College District 152 within the Chicago space, Vera Liddell, has been sentenced to 9 years in jail after admitting to stealing $1.5 million value of rooster wings.
Liddell, 68, stole greater than 11,000 instances of rooster wings meant for take-home meals for college students doing distant studying from July 2020 to February 2022, based on native TV station WGN.
Liddell’s function as meals service director concerned inserting meals orders with Gordon Meals Providers, the district’s predominant provider. Between July 2020 and February 2022, Liddell orchestrated an in depth embezzlement scheme by inserting a whole bunch of unauthorized orders for rooster wings, diverting them from the varsity district’s provides through the Covid-19 pandemic. These wings had been meant for take-home meals for college students who had been studying remotely.
“The huge fraud started on the peak of Covid throughout a time when college students weren’t allowed to be bodily current at school,” a courtroom doc from the Prepare dinner County State’s Legal professional’s Workplace revealed. “Though the kids had been studying remotely, the varsity district continued to supply meals for the scholars that their households might choose up.”
The operation was uncovered in January 2022 when a midyear audit discovered the meals service division had already exceeded its annual funds by $300,000. This prompted the district’s enterprise supervisor to scrutinize the invoices and uncover unauthorized orders for rooster wings, an merchandise not sometimes served to college students as a result of they include bones. Surveillance footage confirmed Liddell utilizing the district’s cargo vans to gather the rooster wings, which had been by no means delivered to the scholars or the varsity.
Throughout a courtroom listening to, Liddell pleaded responsible to the fees, together with her lawyer, Patrick O’Byrne, stating, “She feels extremely distraught, horrible about what she did. She will be able to’t even imagine she did it.” Liddell reportedly suffers from a playing drawback, which has prevented her from paying restitution.
Chris Jones, a defensive deal with for the Kansas Metropolis Chiefs, provided to pay $1.5 million for Liddell’s freedom. “I will pay for the wings that she stole to get her free,” Jones wrote in a social media submit. Liddell’s attorneys said they’d not been contacted by Jones or his representatives.
Dr. Reginald Lawrence, superintendent of the Harvey College District 152, and representatives for Gordon Meals Service declined to touch upon the case. The implications of Liddell’s actions proceed to resonate, highlighting vulnerabilities in oversight and accountability inside college districts through the pandemic.
Liddell, 68, stole greater than 11,000 instances of rooster wings meant for take-home meals for college students doing distant studying from July 2020 to February 2022, based on native TV station WGN.
Liddell’s function as meals service director concerned inserting meals orders with Gordon Meals Providers, the district’s predominant provider. Between July 2020 and February 2022, Liddell orchestrated an in depth embezzlement scheme by inserting a whole bunch of unauthorized orders for rooster wings, diverting them from the varsity district’s provides through the Covid-19 pandemic. These wings had been meant for take-home meals for college students who had been studying remotely.
“The huge fraud started on the peak of Covid throughout a time when college students weren’t allowed to be bodily current at school,” a courtroom doc from the Prepare dinner County State’s Legal professional’s Workplace revealed. “Though the kids had been studying remotely, the varsity district continued to supply meals for the scholars that their households might choose up.”
The operation was uncovered in January 2022 when a midyear audit discovered the meals service division had already exceeded its annual funds by $300,000. This prompted the district’s enterprise supervisor to scrutinize the invoices and uncover unauthorized orders for rooster wings, an merchandise not sometimes served to college students as a result of they include bones. Surveillance footage confirmed Liddell utilizing the district’s cargo vans to gather the rooster wings, which had been by no means delivered to the scholars or the varsity.
Throughout a courtroom listening to, Liddell pleaded responsible to the fees, together with her lawyer, Patrick O’Byrne, stating, “She feels extremely distraught, horrible about what she did. She will be able to’t even imagine she did it.” Liddell reportedly suffers from a playing drawback, which has prevented her from paying restitution.
Chris Jones, a defensive deal with for the Kansas Metropolis Chiefs, provided to pay $1.5 million for Liddell’s freedom. “I will pay for the wings that she stole to get her free,” Jones wrote in a social media submit. Liddell’s attorneys said they’d not been contacted by Jones or his representatives.
Dr. Reginald Lawrence, superintendent of the Harvey College District 152, and representatives for Gordon Meals Service declined to touch upon the case. The implications of Liddell’s actions proceed to resonate, highlighting vulnerabilities in oversight and accountability inside college districts through the pandemic.
