click to enlarge 
Flordell Hills City Hall.
A former clerk admitted yesterday in federal court in St. Louis that she stole almost a half-million dollars from the small, cash-strapped north county municipality where she was employed.
Maureen Woodson, 68, pleaded guilty to mail and wire fraud. From February 2016 to April 2022, Woodson and then-assistant city clerk Donna Thompson wrote more than 600 checks to themselves without the knowledge of other city officials, whose signatures they regularly forged on the checks.
The women are accused of stealing a combined $660,000 from the city. Woodson says she stole a little more than $487,000.
Woodson and Thompson, 75, were indicted last August. The original indictment accused the women of using the pilfered funds to pay off personal expenses and to gamble.
Thompson has thus far pleaded not guilty, but she has a change of plea hearing scheduled for later today.
A little over half of Flordell Hills residents live below the poverty line. The small city near the city-county line is only six square blocks, with a little more than 800 residents and an annual budget of about $400,000.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Hal Goldsmith previously told the
RFT that the theft of city funds came to the federal government's attention when staff at the bank where the women cashed the checks brought their concerns to authorities.
We welcome tips and feedback. Email the author at [email protected]
or follow on Twitter at @RyanWKrull.
Coming soon: Riverfront Times Daily newsletter. We’ll send you a handful of interesting St. Louis stories every morning. Subscribe now to not miss a thing.
Follow us: Google News | NewsBreak | Reddit | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter We welcome tips and feedback. Email the author at [email protected]
or follow on Twitter at @RyanWKrull.
Coming soon: Riverfront Times Daily newsletter. We’ll send you a handful of interesting St. Louis stories every morning. Subscribe now to not miss a thing.
Follow us: Google News | NewsBreak | Reddit | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter
