Columbus - A former employee of the Eastland-Fairfield Career & Technical Schools pocketed $19,593 in students’ tuition and other payments. The audit released today by Auditor of State Dave Yost issued findings for recovery against Darlene Pulsinelli.

“She accepted the students’ money and kept it for herself.” Yost said. “Her actions violated the public trust.”

According to the audit report, Pulsinelli was a cashier responsible for the collection of application fees, tuition, and fees for background checks. School management initially identified $9,857 in missing deposits. An additional $9,736 was discovered by the Auditor of State’s office during the course of an audit for a total of $19,593 in findings for recovery, and she was referred to the Franklin County Prosecutor for prosecution.

On March 10, 2011, Pulsinelli entered a plea of guilty to the indictment of theft in office. A conference of negotiation will determine how restitution will be made, and sentencing is scheduled for May 6, 2011.

A full copy of this audit is available online.

The Auditor of State is one of five independently elected offices under the Ohio Constitution. Auditor Yost’s office is responsible for auditing over 5,600 state and local government agencies. Staff also works in partnership with state and local governments to deal effectively with financial, accounting and budgetary issues.

Contact:
Brittany Elking
Public Information Officer
614-644-1111