Kentucky official accused of charging $150,000 to city credit cards for her benefit
A former city official in Northern Kentucky charged more than $150,000 to city credit cards for her benefit and made fake receipts to cover purchases, a federal grand jury has charged.
The grand jury indicted Allison Donaldson Thursday on four charges of wire fraud and four charges of identity theft.
Donaldson was a manager in the Public Works Department in Covington from 2005 to earlier this year, the indictment said.
Donaldson and other employees had credit cards to use for city business. Donaldson had access to the credit-card information of other employees as a result of her position, the indictment said.
Donaldson allegedly used her card and those of other employees to make expensive purchases for herself.
In one example in the indictment, Donaldson allegedly used a card issued to a coworker to buy four dining-counter stools from Serena & Lily, a luxury furniture store, at a total cost of $4,677.
Donaldson fabricated a receipt that said the purchase was water filter equipment and put the information in the city’s accounting system, the indictment said.
In another instance, Donaldson used another employee’s credit card to buy dressers and a nightstand from Crate & Barrel at a total cost of $3,015 and made up a receipt showing the purchase was for storage units to use at city pools, according to the indictment.
Donaldson allegedly used another employee’s card to buy more than $20,000 worth of items from the Ballard Designs group of stores, including a cabinet, a nightstand, a desk and a martini table.
For one purchase of a desk and cabinet, Donaldson made a fake receipt for “debris containment,” according to the indictment.
In the only other example cited in the indictment, Donaldson allegedly used another employee’s credit card information to pay for $4,603 in repairs to her Mercedes-Benz vehicle and put a receipt in the system for “Misc. Sign Item.”
According to the indictment, Donaldson was the one who uploaded purchase receipts and invoices from employees into the bookkeeping system.
Donaldson forged receipts and invoices to make it appear other employees had made purchases and that they were approved by a supervisor, when in fact they weren’t, the indictment said.
The fraudulent charges occurred from October 2020 through February 2022, the indictment said.
The wire-fraud charges are punishable by up to 20 years in prison. The identity-theft charges carry a two-year sentence to be served on top of any other sentence.
The city said Friday in a statement that Donaldson, described as a business manager, resigned March 4 after being confronted with alleged irregularities related to credit-card purchases.
The city reported the issue to police and cooperated with the investigation, and is working to recover any taxpayer money that was misappropriated, according to the statement.
Covington Mayor Joe Meyer said in the statement that the city’s investigation found Donaldson “worked hard to mislead her fellow employees.”
“She intentionally evaded the Finance Department’s internal controls. She abused the trust of her co-workers and supervisors so she could steal public money to supplement a luxurious lifestyle,” Meyer said. “It is shameful and disappointing behavior that deserves aggressive prosecution and punishment.”
Efforts to reach Donaldson were unsuccessful.
This story was originally published September 9, 2022 at 10:40 AM.
