SEYMOUR – Former Jackson Township trustee 61-year-old Linda Auleman was arrested Friday on charges of theft and official misconduct.
She was booked into the Jackson County Jail at 12:08 p.m. and released 8 minutes later after posting a $1,505 cash bond.
A warrant was issued for Auleman’s arrest, who took office on January 1, 2019, after an audit by the State Board of Accounts covering Jan. 1, 2019, through December 21, 2020.
The audit uncovered that Auleman overpaid herself $54,603.12 more than her approved salary.
Auleman attributed the overpayments to not being trained properly by the previous clerk. She said the salary reflects pay for both working as county recorder and her work as Jackson Township trustee. She told state officials she did not combine the two jobs on one line of the budget saying it looked like she overpaid herself.
She also allegedly caused the township to incur additional employer payroll taxes of $4,115.95 because of the salary overpayments, according to the state documents.
In total the township lost $58,719.94.
The state then billed Auleman $11,756.25 for the audit cost. In total Auleman was ordered to pay back $70,475.31.
The state was able to recover $60,000 from insurance and/or bond coverage related to the special investigation, according to a lawsuit filed by Attorney General Todd Rokita on August 2, 2022, in Jackson Circuit Court. Auleman was ordered to pay $10,632.31 including court costs.
