A former Knoxville Police Department employee has pleaded guilty to stealing money.
According to the United States Attorney's Office, John Harold, 46, of Knoxville, pleaded guilty Friday to one count of embezzling property under the control of the City of Knoxville, worth more than $5000.
Harold was a Senior Financial Analyst for KPD when the crime happened. An internal investigation revealed that Harold had misappropriated over $50,000 in funds associated with the 2007 Internet Crimes Against Children grant that is administered by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention.
According to the press release, Harold "initiated a budget amendment to allow a $50,000 check to be drawn without approval. In April 2011 the check was issued by Harold to the Community Coalition on Family Violence (CCFV) and deposited into a bank account listing CCFV as the owner and Harold as having signatory authority. Account statements indicated that Harold issued checks payable to himself from the CCFV account, including checks totaling $33,000 between December 2010 and August 2011."
Sentencing is set for November 15. He faces up to 10 years in prison, a maximum $250,000 fine and up to three years supervised release.