The former business manager of the Woodward-Granger school district is charged with first-degree theft following a special investigation by the State Auditor’s office.
The investigation identifies some $270,000 in improper spending from December of 2012 through August of 2017. That includes $253,000 of pay and benefits for Melissa Lantz. The report says Lantz issued 101 checks to herself that were not approved by the school board in addition to hear regular paychecks.
Those checks ranged from $315 to $6,500. It also says there were 44 times where Lantz issued an incorrect amount of pay in her authorized paycheck. The report also found undocumented overtime pay for Lantz along with nearly $12,000 in benefits she authorized for others who were no longer working for the district.
The 35-year-old Lantz began working for the school district as a part-time secretary on December 10, 2012. She held several positions before being named the Interim Business Manager/Board Secretary in 2016 and then became the full-time Business Manager/Board Secretary effective on January 1, 2017.
Lantz turned herself in at the Dallas County Jail today and paid a bond and was released.