Former Pa. worker charged with stealing $200K from tax office

UPPER DARBY, Pa. (AP) — Police have arrested a former Pennsylvania municipal worker on a charge of stealing more than $215,000 in taxpayer funds.

The Delaware County District Attorney’s office said Tuesday that 36-year-old Jessica Smith McCusker is charged with theft in connection with money missing from the Upper Darby tax office.

Investigators allege McCusker took cash payments from taxpayers, gave them a receipt and then posted a different date to the computer system. They allege McCusker told police said she used the money from the thefts between 2012 and 2017 to pay rent and tuition and for drugs.

McCusker’s lawyer says she has cooperated with authorities since the start of the investigation. The township has since updated its computer system and no longer accepts cash at the tax office.