Former Mustang Public Schools employee sentenced for $470,000 payroll scheme

A former Mustang Public Schools employee has been sentenced to federal prison after admitting to a years-long payroll fraud scheme.

The U.S. Department of Justice says Kim Weinrich pleaded guilty to wire fraud and making a false tax return after investigators found she manipulated the district’s payroll system to increase her income and falsify tax withholdings.

Prosecutors say the scheme lasted from July 2016 to April 2022, defrauding the district of about $470,000.

A federal judge sentenced Weinrich to 18 months in prison and ordered her to pay more than $595,000 in restitution.

Mustang Superintendent Charles Bradley called the case “a betrayal of the public trust by a single individual,” adding that the district acted quickly once payroll irregularities were discovered. He said the district has since been reimbursed and that impacted employees have been made whole.

Weinrich is expected to begin serving her sentence in the coming weeks.