(The Center Square) – A former administrator at the Illinois Secretary of State’s office has been charged with fraud and theft of state resources totaling nearly $350,000.
The U.S. Attorney for the Central District of Illinois said a federal grand jury returned an indictment against Candace Faye Wanzo of Centralia.
Wanzo was hired as a private secretary in 1999, shortly after Secretary of State Jesse White was elected. That’s after Wanzo pleaded guilty in 1991 to stealing more than a quarter million dollars from Southern Illinois University. The Illinois Times reports she was paid an annual salary of $87,600 before she was terminated in 2018.
During her time as an employee at the Illinois Secretary of State’s Office as administrator and supervisor of Vehicles Services, a statement from U.S. Attorney John Milhiser alleges Wanzo “stole title and registration fees and sales tax payments.”
“According to the indictment, from March 2015 to April 2017, Wanzo misapplied approximately $303,649 in title and registration fees to conceal title and registration fees that she had previously stolen,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office says. “In October 2015, without superiors’ permission or knowledge, Wanzo allegedly changed the SOS policy of not accepting cash for sales tax payments and directed staff to begin accepting cash for the sales tax payments.”
The statement said staff was then directed to deliver cash to Wanzo in a yellow envelope.
“In addition to the $303,649 in misapplied title and registration fees, the indictment alleges that Wanzo stole approximately $40,102 in sales tax payments from December 2008 to April 2017,” the U.S. Attorney said.
Milhiser’s office said all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty but if found guilty of three counts of mail fraud, intentional misapplication of fees and theft from sales tax payments, Wanzo could serve up to 30 years in prison.
