Hanging Dog – A local couple has pleaded guilty to using a volunteer fire department’s funds for personal benefit.
Amanda Mintz Mashburn, 44, pled guilty to one count of felony embezzlement in the Cherokee County Courthouse on Tuesday morning. Her husband David Mashburn, 46, pled guilty to a single count of obtaining property by false pretense, also a felony.
“Both of these defendants deserve extensive time in custody,” N.C. Department of Insurance attorney R. Jordan Green told the court. “You don’t steal $96,000 and not go to prison.”
The Mashburns were indicted by a Cherokee County grand jury in July. As part of the plea agreement between the parties, prosecutors dropped a felony charge of malfeasance of a corporation officer against Amanda.
Judge William Coward sentenced each of the Mashburns to a minimum of five months in prison, with the possibility of serving 15 months in custody if the couple does not pay restitution and meet probation requirements. David was taken to prison Tuesday morning after the hearing; Amanda will surrender to authorities Friday after making arrangements for care of their children.
“The needs of their children had a direct impact on what happened,” Amanda’s attorney, Linda Fowler, argued in court.
According to prosecutors, Amanda began to steal thousands of dollars a month from the Hanging Dog Volunteer Fire Department 10 months into her term as treasurer of the organization. She served in that role from November 2016 until January 2020, and she had access to the fire department’s debit card during that time.
Prosecutors say the embezzlement came to light because someone ran against Amanda for treasurer and won, which forced her to turn over the bookkeeping records. When Amanda handed over the treasurer role, she and David told fire department officials they “borrowed” money from the organization and handed over a check for $20,000 in restitution.
“The only reason the thefts ended was because her tenure as treasurer ended,” Green said.
The Mashburns asked fire department officials not to report the embezzlement to law enforcement and not to prosecute them, according to Green, who said the N.C. Department of Insurance became involved in the case because some of the stolen money came directly from the state fire marshal’s office.
In total, the couple must repay $76,302.50 or serve additional prison time after being released on probation in three months.
In arguing for no prison time, Fowler said the Mashburns used the money for “day-to-day expenses” related to taking care of their family, which includes a child diagnosed with autism as well as another child diagnosed with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.
“They know they did wrong and now want to make it right,” Fowler said, while adding that the pair was ready to immediately pay $7,000 of the restitution payment after the hearing Tuesday.
In pleading guilty, David admitted to using the fire department’s debit card to withdraw money without proper authorization to do so. At the time of the alleged offense, David served as vice president of the fire department’s board of directors and also led the unit as an assistant fire chief.