Accountant Allegedly Embezzled Millions In School Lunch Money

It wasn’t a random bully that was stealing students’ lunch money.

Instead, a school district accountant in Rialto, Calif., allegedly embezzled about $3 million in school lunch money, some of which was even reportedly stuffed in her bra.

A forensic audit commissioned by the school board in the ongoing investigation suggests that as much as $3 million could have been pilfered over a 14-year period.

Long-time employee Judith Oakes resigned from her job with the school district after she was arrested on suspicion of grand theft, embezzlement, and burglary. Surveillance footage not yet released reportedly caught her stuffing cash into her bra before leaving work on at least two occasions.

The San Bernardino Sun reports that “Thousands of dollars in student lunch money passed through Oakes’ hands daily as it was collected from district schools and sent to her to inventory and deposit into the district’s bank account.” Oakes was an accountant in the school district’s Nutrition Services Department.

Several other individuals may also be involved in the alleged theft.

According to Police Captain Randy De Anda, “Obviously she had access to large sums of money and she was able to possess those large sums of money and get them out of the building.” De Anda added that his is the largest white-collar crime that detectives in the Rialto Police Department has ever investigated. State and federal authorities are also conducting probes into the alleged lunch money theft.

Police said they found thousands of dollars in cash in her possession when they arrested Oakes in August.

In a statement, the Rialto Unified School District said that “the district is continuing to work closely with law enforcement to make sure that those criminally responsible are identified and prosecuted. We are taking all appropriate steps to recover the lost funds.”