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Ex-School Accountant Caught Stuffing Lunch Money In Bra Sentenced To 5 Years

RANCHO CUCAMONGA (CBSLA.com) — A former Rialto Unified School District accountant was sentenced Thursday to five years in county jail for embezzling $1.8 million in district lunch money.

Judith Oakes, 50, was arrested in Aug. 2013 after a video of her stuffing bundles of school money in her bra and purse prompted the district to run an audit.

Nearly $2 million were discovered missing from the nutrition program. In Dec. 2014, Oakes pleaded guilty to stealing the funds over a four-year period.

"Her first statement to me when I interviewed her was, 'Thank God it's over,'" defense attorney Patrick Milligan said.

CBS2's Tom Wait asked Milligan if Oakes would still be stealing if she hadn't been caught.

"I believe that being caught is a very huge, important part of a process," Milligan said.

At Thursday's sentencing, district officials had harsh words for her saying she robbed students of healthy meals.

"We are dealing with the more insidious lingering harm, which is the potential loss of faith in the district and public education in general," said RUSD Associate Superintendent Thomas Haldorsen.

The District Attorney's office believes Oakes received a fair sentence even though Oakes will likely spend less than three years behind bars.

"I believe that the sentence is commensurate with the proof that we had and the crime that was committed. I believe it gets justice for the victims," prosecutor Jason Liso said.

School officials say $3 million still remain unaccounted for.

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