This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2017, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
A former financial analyst for the Utah Schools for the Deaf and Blind has been sentenced to jail time and ordered to repay $67,000 she stole from school accounts.
Leslie Sue White, 44, of Ogden, was charged last year in 2nd District Court with communications fraud and two counts of unlawful use of a financial transaction card, all second-degree felonies, as well as third-degree felony theft.
In November, White pleaded guilty to the two counts of unlawful use of a financial transaction card and the other charges were dismissed.
On Tuesday, Judge Noel Hyde sentenced White to 30 days in jail followed by 60 days in a jail restitution program.
Deputy Weber County Attorney Letitia Toombs said the restitution program is similar to work release. Inmates are allowed to leave the jail for the day to work, but must pay a percentage of their earnings toward restitution, she said.
At the end of the restitution program, White must begin paying $300 per month to the Utah Schools for the Deaf and Blind.
Toombs said White's 36-month probation period will likely be extended indefinitely until all of the $67,000 has been repaid.
Charging documents state that White began stealing from the school in November 2011. It was after White left the school in January 2016 for a different job that the missing funds were discovered, charges state.
White used the school's Sam's Club credits cards to charge more than $43,000 during 379 transactions for personal expenditures — including gift cards, electronics, automobile fuel, auto services and cigarettes, charges state.
She also made at least $20,000 in potentially fraudulent purchases at Smith's Food King, which included the purchase of gift cards or prepaid credit cards, charges state.
Auditors found that White manipulated monthly financial reports to the school's Advisory Council, including efforts to conceal the theft of donated funds, charges state.
White also used the school's tax exemption for personal purchases, and she made unlawful charges while traveling to locations outside of Utah, charges state.