School & County Employees Accept Guilty Pleas for Drew Central Concession Stand Theft
October 30th, 2020 by Joe Burgess
A pair of Drew County Circuit Court cases were resolved, Monday, when the two defendants each accepted guilty pleas to breaking & entering (3 years probation) and misdemeanor theft of property (2 year probation).
During the February 28-29 basketball playoff games, taking place at Drew Central, a school employee and a county employee were working in the concession stand, and were individually accused of stealing money from the cash box.
After video surveillance showed April Irons placing money from the concession stand in her pocket, marked bills were then spent in the concession stand. After the concession stand closed, the money was counted and Irons was read her rights. In her pockets, officers found $500 in cash, including 2 marked $100 bills.
Irons was a para-pro with the school district, and was charged with theft of property over $500 and breaking & entering.
During the Drew County Sheriff’s investigation of the Irons case, Steven Stain became a “person of interest,” as well. Stain was an auxiliary deputy and county OEM director. Sheriff Gober, because of a possible “conflict of interest,” turned the case over to the Arkansas State Police for further investigation. Documentation shows that the ASP accuses Stain of taking money, also.
Sheriff Mark Gober told MLive, in July, that Stain was no longer with the sheriff’s auxiliary, but remained employed by the county.
Both cases drew closer to an end, Monday, in Circuit Judge Bynum Gibson’s court, as both defendants pled guilty to reduced charges, Stain being required to pay restitution of $1048, with final sentencing on both to take place on the next court date, which will be in December.
