Bettsville ex-employee given 4 years in prison

10/3/2009

TIFFIN — A former employee of the Seneca County village of Bettsville was sentenced Friday to four years in prison for stealing around $15,000 from the local recreation board.

Michelle Kidwell, 32, of Tiffin pleaded guilty in August to theft in office, a third-degree felony, for taking money from the Bettsville Recreation Board. In addition to the prison sentence, Seneca County Common Pleas Judge Michael Kelbley ordered her to pay restitution to the village.

County Prosecutor Derek DeVine said Kidwell paid more than $9,400 to the board after a state audit showed she had used board funds to pay personal utility bills and make salary overpayments. She was ordered Friday to pay an additional $5,800 to cover money stolen from the village's annual Fourth of July celebration.