Crime

Former Kentucky county official indicted on 67 counts of forgery from payroll account

The former office manager of the Boyd County Child Support Office has been indicted after allegedly stealing more than $30,000 over several years, state police said.

A contractor working with the office reported in September that Mary Pickett, 55, was allegedly taking money, Kentucky State Police said.

She was subsequently terminated and escorted out of the office, police said. No money was taken from any child support account or case.

Pickett allegedly took the money from the payroll account over the course of seven years, according to the indictment.

Pickett, of Flatwoods, allegedly forged the name of Brian Bayes, a Kentucky contracting official, on 67 checks. The checks ranged in value from $150 to more than $1,150 and totaled more than $33,000, according to the indictment.

She was indicted Tuesday, Nov. 26, on one count of theft and 67 counts of forgery.

Pickett is scheduled to be arraigned Tuesday. According to court records, a warrant has been issued for Pickett’s arrest.

This story was originally published December 2, 2019 at 1:43 PM.

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Mike Stunson
Lexington Herald-Leader
Mike Stunson covers real-time news for McClatchy. He is a 2011 Western Kentucky University graduate who has previously worked at the Paducah Sun and Madisonville Messenger as a sports reporter and the Lexington Herald-Leader as a breaking news reporter. 
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Will Wright
Lexington Herald-Leader
Will Wright is a corps member with Report for America, a national service project made possible in Eastern Kentucky with support from the Galloway Family Foundation. Based in Pikeville, Wright joined the Herald-Leader in January 2018 and reports on Eastern Kentucky. Support my work with a digital subscription
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