Colwyn fire company officials charged with theft
The Delaware County District Attorney's office issued arrest warrants for three Colwyn Borough fire company officials Monday, ending a 10-month investigation into accusations that fire officials stole tens of thousands of dollars from station funds.
The Delaware County District Attorney's office issued arrest warrants for three Colwyn Borough fire company officials Monday, ending a 10-month investigation into accusations that fire officials stole tens of thousands of dollars from station funds.
According to a spokeswoman for the District Attorney's office, theft charges were brought Monday against Gary Brice, former chief of Colwyn's Fire Station 92; Betty Cellini, the station's former president; and her daughter, Lauren Cellini, the company's treasurer.
No other details were available. Prosecutors planned an afternoon news conference to discuss the case.
The charges follow allegations from residents and officials that fire company employees had mismanaged funds for years.
Originally brought by Paula Brown, Colwyn's contentious former borough manager, such claims gained traction last week when Pennsylvania Auditor General Eugene DePasquale called the fire company an "absolute mess" on social media, released an audit that concluded nearly $90,000 in unauthorized and undocumented spending, and froze state funding to the company.
The District Attorney's office launched an investigation into Colwyn's firehouse in February 2015. Investigators raided the firehouse twice in the last four months, seeking documents that might indicate financial mismanagement.
"Moneys were not approved through a general meeting to be spent, and no receipts were ever produced as to the expenditures," Detective Michele Deery stated in an August affidavit for a search warrant.
For months, the District Attorney's office has also been investigating borough officials for misusing borough funds. No charges or arrests have been brought in that investigation.
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