Jennifer McGuire

According to a probable cause affidavit from the Whitley County Prosecutor’s Office, Indiana State Police Detective Deven Hostetler states the Jennifer R. McGuire knowingly or intentionally exerted unauthorized control over Whitley County property between the dates of Feb. 12, 2011 and June 30, 2014.

McGuire faces two theft charges and one charge of official misconduct. One theft charge accuses her of misusing county credit cards and funds, valued at more than $100,000. The other theft charge states that between May 19, 2014, and June 30, 2014, McGuire knowingly exerted unauthorized control over property of the Indiana County Auditors Association, with intent to deprive ICAA of value thereof.

According to the affidavit, on July 30, 2014, Hostetler met with Whitley County Commissioner George Schrumph, several other county employees and the Whitley County Prosecutor to discuss findings regarding McGuire. Schrumph stated that while McGuire was on vacation, office staff discovered a Whitley County FIA Credit Card statement in the mail on June 25, 2014. The statement was opened and staff discovered what was believed to be unauthorized spending.

It was determined that two FIA credit cards, which McGuire reported cancelled, were still being used by McGuire for personal use. One card was in McGuire’s name, the other in Schrumph’s name. An investigation by the auditor’s office and Whitley County Commissioners would reveal evidence that McGuire used a county credit card to make a total of $54,642.62 in personal purchases.

Further investigation revealed that McGuire was using money from the county funds, primarily the redevelopment fund, but others were also used, to pay the balances on the FIA credit cards. The investigation indicates that McGuire was writing fraudulent vendor claims to obtain checks to pay the credit card statements.

After the meeting in July, Hostetler reviewed the credit card statements. “I did not see any charges that appeared to be a legitimate county expense,” he wrote in the affidavit. “All the charges were to retail stores, gas stations, retail online purchases, Direct TV bill, cell phone bill, restaurants, airline tickets, hotel stays and Facebook games.”

Hostetler also reviewed McGuire’s Facebook page and found posts that correlated with expenditures on the credit cards. For example, on Feb. 1, 2014, a charge of $246.98 from County Outfitters was charged to one of the cards. On Feb. 5, 2014, McGuire posted a picture to Facebook of new cowboy boots that arrived that day. On May 7, 2014, a charge of $800 to Carpet City Outlet in Fort Wayne appeared. Approximately two weeks later, McGuire posted a picture to her Facebook page showing her new kitchen floors. Hostetler also found that more than a thousand dollars had been charged for Facebook games like “Hit It Rich Casino Slots.”

On June 25, 2014 – the same day the credit card statement was discovered – the State Board of Accounts was finishing a routine audit at the Whitley County Government Center. The board had not uncovered the fraudulent activity in previous audits, but the statement was brought to the auditors’ attention once it was opened.

Lois Debolt of the Indiana State Board of Accounts conducted an exit interview with McGuire on July 25, 2014. During the interview, McGuire presented Debolt with a handwritten document stating the credit card in her name had a balance of $1,152.69, and that both FIA credit cards were cancelled on July 24, 2014.

On Sept. 19, 2014, the county received a Home Depot credit card bill that had been opened by McGuire. There was not evidence that McGuire was paying off the card with county funds, but the county paid off the $880.58 balance to avoid additional charges.

On Oct. 15, the State Board of Accounts released a complete audit report covering January 2011 to present. A summary of the findings are as follows:

Undocumented purchases: $78,858.89
Cash advances and fees: $20,311.09
Total: $106,413.52
Total theft: $102,882.40
Cost of audit and investigation: $27,666.24

Investigation into McGuire’s personal finance revealed that she had widespread financial issues. Her house was in foreclosure, and she had not made a house payment since July 2009. She had a total $8,734 in overdraft and returned fees from 2010 to July 2014. She also regularly borrowed money from payday loan companies.

McGuire was elected auditor and took office on Jan. 1, 2011. She served until she resigned on Aug. 13, 2014. She was booked into the Whitley County Jail on Monday, Nov. 3, on two charges of theft and official misconduct.