CSU puts worker on leave with filing of theft charges
Fort Collins – A Colorado State University employee accused of stealing $17,000 from the school and using a university credit card for personal purchases is on paid leave, a school spokesman said.
Reva Jeannette Miles, 55, was advised of charges of theft and embezzlement of public property last week and was scheduled to appear in district court again Tuesday.
She was charged after an investigation revealed about $17,200 was missing since July 2002 from an account for the University Counseling Center, according to police documents.
Miles, a 30-year employee with CSU, was responsible for depositing cash and checks received by the center. A co-worker checked records and found that only checks, not cash, were being deposited, according to an arrest warrant affidavit.
Miles told investigators she was using the cash for petty cash, but she could not provide receipts, police said.
Most departments do not have petty cash funds, said CSU spokesman Brad Bohlander, because the university issues tax-exempt credit cards for employees to use for work-related purchases.
A review of Miles’ university-issued credit card showed nearly $500 in purchases made in 2002 and 2003 for items that could not be found in the center and were believed to have been for personal use, police said.
CSU policy does not allow use of university-issued credit cards for personal purchases.
AURORA
Woman, 84, killed as car hits her in street
An 84-year-old woman was killed Saturday night when she was hit by a car as she walked across East Yale Avenue.
According to Aurora police, the woman, whom they did not identify, was not in a crosswalk when she headed south across Yale.
She was hit by a green 1994 Mazda Protege that was eastbound on Yale, driven by a 57-year-old woman. Police have not identified the driver.
Police say the preliminary investigation does not point to either excessive speed or alcohol as a factor in the accident.
GARFIELD COUNTY
2 troopers hurt in chase; man arrested
Two Colorado State Patrol Troopers were slightly injured Saturday on the Western Slope when a driver trying to avoid capture rammed his car into a State Patrol car and an officer’s motorcycle.
Officers eventually arrested Christopher Gallegos, 37, of Grand Junction.
Gallegos is being held without bail in Mesa County Jail, charged with two attempted assaults on a police officer, eluding police, possessing stolen license plates, reckless driving and being an habitual traffic offender.
Garfield County officers were the ones who began chasing the car Gallegos was driving – a 1985 Nissan Maxima. The chase was halted at the Garfield County/Mesa County line.
A state trooper later spotted Gallegos’ car near Cameo, and the pursuit resumed.
After trying to swerve into a trooper’s car on Colorado 6, Gallegos turned into a residential neighborhood, where officers boxed in his car, officials said.
FIRESTONE
Colorado woman dies in Nebraska accident
A 72-year-old Colorado woman died Saturday after an auto accident in Nebraska.
The driver of a sport utility vehicle the woman was riding in lost control on loose gravel, and the vehicle rolled on a Gosper County road.
The woman, from Firestone, was not wearing her seat belt. A 52-year-old woman, also of Firestone, was driving and was wearing her seat belt.
The driver was released from Phelps Memorial Health Center in Holdrege. Authorities have not released the names of the women.
BOULDER
’03 wildfire victims settle suit against Xcel
Jamestown residents who lost homes or property in a 2003 wildfire have settled a lawsuit against Xcel Energy.
The 49 plaintiffs agreed not to disclose financial terms of the settlement.
Attorney Tom MacFarland, who represented most of the residents and insurance companies that sued Xcel, and an Xcel spokesman declined comment.
Witnesses said the 3,500-acre Overland fire in 2003 burned at least 18 houses.
In 2004, residents filed their negligence lawsuit against Xcel and one of its contractors, saying the fire was sparked from a power line that was downed by a tree in high wind.
The lawsuit alleged the utility company failed to properly remove trees that could fall on the line.
