A Monroe woman faced with debts and foreclosure of her home has been accused of stealing more than $33,000 from the parent-teacher association of Monroe Elementary School.
Mary Suzanne Duff, 40, was charged Wednesday with first-degree theft. Prosecutors say she dipped into the PTA’s fund-raising profits when she was treasurer of the organization between July 1, 2000, and May 30, 2002.
While she was treasurer, Duff was responsible for collecting all fund-raising money and making bank deposits, deputy prosecutor Mara Rozzano said.
"During the period she was treasurer, the defendant wrote unauthorized checks to herself, forged checks and made cash withdrawals from the PTA account," Rozzano said. "A review of the accounts after the defendant’s termination led to the discovery of $33,710.07 in missing funds."
Other PTA members requested copies of statements, checks and other documents from the bank because Duff failed to return many records belonging to the organization, Rozzano said.
Snohomish County detectives got a search warrant for her home in September 2002. While some officers were searching, others interviewed Duff.
She allegedly admitted taking a check for $400 from the PTA, insisting that she had paid back the money in small amounts of cash each time she made a deposit.
She also denied having any uncashed checks or PTA records in her possession, Rozzano said.
Officers found records and checks payable to the PTA, as well as $5,000 in cash. The PTA records were found hidden throughout the home, some under a child’s mattress, others in closets and kitchen cabinets, Rozzano said.
As the search progressed, Duff admitted she had some records stored in her home, Rozzano said. She told officers she was keeping the records and cash until she could meet with members of PTA and return them, Rozzano said.
The deputy prosecutor said Duff then showed detectives a moneybag filled with cash and coins, and more PTA records they had missed in one of the closets in the basement.
Duff insisted she had taken only $400 from the school organization, explaining she needed it to cover some personal expenses. Among the documents found by detectives was a court judgment for more than $15,000 against Duff and her husband, Rozzano said.
A second search of Duff’s bank records showed the defendant made more than $10,000 in cash deposits and purchased at least two cashier’s checks payable to loan and mortgage debts, Rozzano said.
A foreclosure notice for Duff’s home was published in the newspaper on Sept. 6 that year, she added.
Reporter Jim Haley: 425-339-3447 or haley@heraldnet.com.
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