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Mulholland receives suspended sentence, probation

Leah Mulholland

WEBSTER CITY — A former Webster City Chamber of Commerce administrative assistant was given a 10-year suspended prison sentence, five years of probation and a $1,000 fine which was also suspended, on a charge of first-degree theft Tuesday in Hamilton County District Court.

Leah Mulholland, 41, entered a plea of guilty on Dec. 4, 2020 on the theft charge. Three other charges — ongoing criminal conduct — influence enterprise, forgery and unauthorized use of credit cards over $1,500 and under $10,000 — were dismissed by the court.

She was arrested in February 2020 following a lengthy investigation related to more than $239,586.23 in improper disbursements from the Webster City Chamber of Commerce.

On June 25, 2018, the Webster City Police Department requested the assistance of the Division of Criminal Investigations on a financial investigation involving the Webster City Chamber of Commerce and the former administrative assistant, Mulholland. The office of the Auditor of State conducted an audit for the period of Oct. 1, 2013 through June 30, 2018. The audit report was released July 3, 2019. The audit found 367 checks issued to Mulholland totaling $236,313.03. Of those checks, 139 were payroll check; four were bonuses and two were reimbursements. Two-hundred twenty-two were unauthorized checks ranging from $20 to $2,000. There was also $23,602.83 of unsupported disbursements, according to the auditor’s report.

Auditors also found 846 debit card transactions with only 107 that were properly supported by chamber records.

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