Former Accounting Assistant Pleads Guilty To Theft
SANTA ANA (AP) — A former accounting assistant with the Orange County Treasurer-Tax Collector's Office has pleaded guilty to stealing over $2,600 in taxes and fees paid by county residents.
The district attorney's office says Laura Estrella Cruz entered pleas Tuesday to grand theft and misappropriation of public funds -- both felonies.
She was sentenced to 60 days in jail, five years of probation and 45 days of community service. She also was ordered to $2,616 in restitution and $1,000 to the Victim Witness Emergency Fund.
Prosecutors say Cruz deposited about 20 checks and money orders made payable to the County of Orange into her personal bank account between January and July 2010.
The theft was discovered during a routine accounting review.
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