Embezzlement Charged Against Ex-Bookkeeper

A former Bonner County employee faces grand theft charges for allegedly embezzling about $48,000 from the road department.

An arrest warrant was issued Thursday for Pat Achziger, who worked as a secretary and bookkeeper in the department. She quit her post last year before the alleged embezzlement was discovered and has moved away from the area.

Prosecutor Phil Robinson said state authorities have been investigating the case for months. Enough evidence was compiled to have a judge issue an arrest warrant and a $50,000 bond for Achziger.

She faces 21 counts of embezzlement. She is accused of taking money from the county from 1992 to 1996, Robinson said.

An employee discovered money missing after finding duplicate purchase orders on the county computer. Police claim Achziger was using a phony company and billing the county for products that were never delivered, Robinson said.

The billing address on one of the orders went to a post office box. The box was owned by Achziger and some of the purchase orders also included her own address on them, authorities said. The complaint against Achziger says she falsified county accounts, bookkeeping records and cashed checks made to her bogus business. The check amounts ranged from $390 to $2,700.

This is the second case of embezzlement in the county in several years. Former Bonner County Treasurer Karen Weldon quit her six-year post after authorities found she used her county credit card to buy personal items. Weldon was convicted and ordered to repay the county.

, DataTimes