SPRINGFIELD, Ill., April 2 (UPI) -- A retired employee has been formally charged with stealing more than $250,000 from the state of Illinois to pay bills, buy a boat and take a cruise.
Debra K. Kirby, 54, of Taylorville, Ill., has been indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of wire fraud and money laundering in connection with the theft, the Chicago Sun-Times reported Wednesday.
Kirby was responsible for overseeing a unit in the Illinois treasurer's office that processed deposits for the state.
She retired in 2006 after 33 years on the job.
The indictment charges Kirby with transferring $750,000 in government funds to a personal bank account she established using her mother's address, the newspaper says.
Through an elaborate scheme, she later returned all but $263,408 of the money.
Former Treasurer Judy Baar Topinka said she was stunned when she learned of the theft.
"I guess it is conceivable that she could do this without anyone in the office knowing it. I was personally shocked by it, that it happened at all," Topinka said.
