Continuance denied for Mitchener

A request for a continuance of the trial of a Roachdale woman accused of taking more than $50,000 from the special needs cooperative where she worked has been denied by the court.

Tammy Y. Mitchener, 32, is set for jury trial on April 22. She is charged with Class C felony corrupt business influence (also known as racketeering) and Class D felony theft. If convicted on both counts, Mitchener could be sentenced to up to 11 years in prison.

According to court documents, Mitchener funneled funds to herself from Old National Trail, an organization that provides services to special needs students in all of Putnam County's school districts, by setting up a dummy corporation. Mitchener was employed as ONT's treasurer when the alleged thefts occurred.

On Thursday, the State Board of Accounts completed and filed an audit of Old National Trail. The audit report showed the amount collectible due to Mitchener's alleged thefts and negligence to be $109,249.78.

"That number is actually the total of two separate numbers," said Paul Joyce, deputy state examiner for the State Board of Accounts. "The first number is disbursements, or checks she wrote to herself, which we found to be $56,639.16.

"The second number is $52,610.62, which is penalties and interest paid to the Internal Revenue Service and the Indiana Department of Revenue during 2007 and 2008," Joyce continued. "This money was owed because (Mitchener) didn't do her job."

Mitchener began working at ONT on July 1, 2007. The State Board of Accounts audit report shows that she wrote 22 checks to PC Technologies, a fictitious vendor, between the dates of Feb. 24, 2008 and Oct. 31, 2008. The smallest check was for $1,000, while the largest was for $7,606.16.

Court documents allege that after Mitchener issued checks to PC Technology, she would deposit them into the account she had set up for the company and then move them into her personal checking account using online banking services.

Mitchener was arrested Dec. 2. She posted 10 percent of a $10,000 bond and was released from jail the same day.

Any plea agreements in the case must be filed by March 26.