A woman in Cook County has spent more than a decade working as a food service director for Harvey School District 152. It was reported that one of her regular duties was to place orders with the food suppliers who work with the district.
Last year, the school district’s budget was audited, and it was reportedly found to be approximately $300,000 over the allotted yearly amount, though the year was only half over.
It was reported that the district investigated the alleged missing funds by going through the paperwork for the purchases being made. They reportedly found invoices for large amounts of chicken wings from Gordon Food Service, which is one of their regular suppliers. The district was billed for the orders.
From July 2020 until February 2022, more than 11,000 cases of chicken wings had been ordered. They believed the food service director had placed the orders, but they were not sure why since they do not serve wings at the schools.
Of the 1,600 children enrolled in the district more than 80% of qualifying as coming from low-income homes. Because COVID kept the students from learning on campus, the schools supplied pick-up meals, and it was during that period that the chicken wings were ordered.
According to reports, after further investigation, the authorities allege that the woman used a school district van to pick up the cases of wings, but they do not know what became of them.
An estimated $1.5 million in total was reported missing from the school district finances.
The woman was booked into the Cook County Jail. She is facing charges of theft and operating a criminal enterprise. She has been incarcerated in lieu of a $150,000 bond.
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