A 51-year-old Toledo woman has pleaded guilty to theft, a charge linked to accusations that she stole nearly $30,000 while serving as the bookkeeper of the Cedar Village IGA in Winlock, and was sentenced Wednesday to 60 days of electronic home monitoring.
Trisha M. Williams paid restitution in the amount of $28,804 as she accepted a plea agreement July 30, pleading guilty to a reduced charge of felony second-degree theft after initially being charged with first-degree theft in Lewis County Superior Court in December 2024.
“Between July 13, 2020, and November 19, 2024, I worked at the IGA grocery market located in Lewis County WA,” Williams wrote in her guilty plea. “Part of my duties involved tracking paid time off and submitting payroll. Over that time, I assigned vacation and sick time to my pay that I was not entitled to. The amount of money I wrongfully received was in excess of $750.”
She was charged Monday, Dec. 30, 2024, in Lewis County Superior Court with one count of first-degree theft.
Williams was the only person in charge of Cedar Village IGA’s payroll during her employment there from July 2020 to October 2024, according to court documents. Williams reportedly trained the new bookkeeper between October and her departure on Nov. 19.
On Nov. 29, the business’s new bookkeeper informed the Winlock Police Department that she had discovered fraud allegedly committed by Williams, according to court documents.
Williams was accused of crediting herself with an extra 959.75 hours of vacation time and an extra 196.5 hours of sick time, which she cashed out, for a total of approximately $28,912.50, according to court documents.
The store owner and store manager both verified that Williams was the only person with access to the payroll system between July 12, 2020, and Nov. 19, 2024, according to court documents.
She was charged Monday, Dec. 30, in Lewis County Superior Court with one count of first-degree theft.
Williams was the only person in charge of Cedar Village IGA’s payroll during her employment there from July 2020 to October 2024, according to court documents. Williams reportedly trained the new bookkeeper between October and her departure on Nov. 19.
On Nov. 29, the business’s new bookkeeper informed the Winlock Police Department that she had discovered fraud allegedly committed by Williams, according to court documents.
Williams is accused of crediting herself with an extra 959.75 hours of vacation time and an extra 196.5 hours of sick time, which she cashed out, for a total of approximately $28,912.50, according to court documents.
The store owner and store manager have both verified that Williams was the only person with access to the payroll system between July 12, 2020, and Nov. 19, 2024, according to court documents.
