WEST MIDDLESEX Fire treasurer charged with theft of funds

WEST MIDDLESEX, Pa. -- Authorities said the former treasurer of the Shenango Township Volunteer Fire Department can't account for nearly $1,000 in missing funds and has been charged with theft in the case.
Jacalyn A. Varga, 50, of Pulaski Road was arraigned before District Justice Henry Russo on charges of theft by unlawful taking, receiving stolen property and theft by failure to make required disposition of funds received.
She is free on her own recognizance pending a preliminary hearing at 11 a.m. Nov. 27.
The complaint filed in the case said an audit of fire department records in June 2001 showed that three bank deposits logged in Varga's treasurer's notebook of $770.52, $162.40 and $34 in late 2000 and early 2001 didn't show up in monthly bank statements.
Auditors questioned Varga about those deposits made during her 2 1/2 years as treasurer, and she claimed she had made the deposits but that, if the deposit slips couldn't be found, she would cover the loss, the complaint said.
The slips were never found and Varga never covered the loss, the complaint said.
The problem was reported to the Mercer County district attorney's office by a fire department representative in April 2002, and the county sheriff's office eventually filed charges against her.