Davenport Woman Sentenced to Prison for Stealing from the Scott County Jail

DAVENPORT, IA - On April 10, 2017, Jennifer Wierson, age 43, of Davenport, Iowa, was sentenced by United States District Court Judge Rebecca Goodgame Ebinger to 21 months in prison for theft from a government agency receiving federal program funds, announced United States Attorney Kevin VanderSchel.

Wierson, a former Scott County Jail Senior Account Clerk, admitted stealing from different jail programs from as early as 2011 until April of 2015. The Scott County Sheriff’s office receives federal assistance in currency over $10,000 every calendar year and did so from 2011 through 2015, which makes Wierson’s thefts a federal offense. Wierson was also ordered to serve three years of supervised release following her imprisonment and to pay $100 towards the Crime Victims’ Fund.

In April of 2015, Scott County Jail employees discovered irregularities in the financial handling of various jail programs managed by Wierson. McGladrey LLP conducted a forensic audit to investigate these irregularities. That investigation revealed Wierson had stolen or misappropriated more than $160,000. On September 16, 2016, the United States Attorney filed a felony information, charging Wierson with theft from a government agency receiving federal program funds.

On September 29, 2016, Wierson pled guilty to a charge admitting she stole or misappropriated at least $169,000 from the Scott County Sheriff’s Office. After pleading guilty, Wierson was released and will report to the designated facility within the Federal Bureau of Prisons.

This investigation was conducted by the Davenport Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The case was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa.

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Learn more about this release by calling Rachel J. Scherle at 515-473-9300, or by emailing her at Rachel.Scherle@usdoj.gov.