Mary Humphreys, 26, of Fultondale, turned herself in to the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office on Friday after she was charged with first-degree theft of property related to Fultondale Elementary School PTA funds. 

According to the sheriff’s office, a school resource deputy at the school was asked to investigate a report of suspicious transactions on the PTA account in late November of 2017. According to investigators, a PTA member had picked up the bank statement from the post office box and noticed the statement seemed unusually bulky. PTA members reportedly reviewed the statement and noticed a number of charges that were not PTA related and notified the PTA president and school principal.

The PTA president and principal then discovered that the debit card for the account was missing from the school safe and called the PTA treasurer, Humphreys, to the school. 

According to the sheriff’s office, Humphreys admitted to using the card for purchases that ranged from personal bills to online purchases to jewelry and manicures and even cash withdrawals. Humphreys reportedly told school officials that she would pay the money back. 

The exact dollar amount of the fraudulent charges was not given, but sheriff’s deputies said their investigation revealed it was in excess of $10,000 and happened between September and November of 2017. 

Deputies presented the case to the Jefferson County District Attorney’s Office on Jan. 18 and obtained warrants for first-degree theft of property. Humphreys turned herself in on Jan. 19 and was released on $5,000 bond.