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Ex-Town Clerk Of Pinetop-Lakeside Pleads Guilty To Theft

Facebook/Visit Pinetop-Lakeside, AZ

A former town clerk of Pinetop-Lakeside has pleaded guilty to stealing more than $30,000 from the eastern Arizona town.

The Arizona Attorney General's Office announced 40-year-old Leah Chavez was taken into custody Wednesday.

She's scheduled to be sentenced on July 11 and is facing a one-year prison term as part of a plea agreement.

A state grand jury indicted Chavez last August on 10 felony counts including theft, forgery and misuse of public monies.

Prosecutors say Chavez charged more than $16,000 on a Pinetop-Lakeside credit card in 2016 to pay for personal expenses such as shopping, car payments and home landscaping.

She also was accused of stealing more than $15,000 in cash from the town.

Prosecutors say Chavez must pay more than $32,000 in restitution to Pinetop-Lakeside.

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