Ex-Minn. school business manager pleads guilty
Associated Press
Minneapolis — A former business manager for a western Minnesota school district has pleaded guilty to stealing about $275,000 from the district.
Forty-three-year-old Liane Claassen of Chokio (shuh-KY'-oh) was business manager for the Chokio-Alberta School District. She pleaded guilty in federal court Friday to one count of wire fraud.
In her plea agreement, Claassen admitted that between July 1999 through August 2010 she used the district's computer to pay herself more money than her salary allowed.
As business manager, Claassen was responsible for payroll for all district employees. She admitted to illegally transferring money into her retirement account and covering up the scheme by misrepresenting the district's financial condition to her employers.
The Chokio-Alberta School District has about 170 students. A sentencing date has not been set.
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