NANTICOKE -- A former secretary of the Luzerne County Community College is charged with stealing thousands of dollars from the college between 2009 and 2011.
College officials said Janet Griffith of Nanticoke was officially fired on Wednesday.
Police said over a two year period, she pocketed cash payments totaling close to $17,000 while she was a secretary at the school's public safety training institution.
The arrest comes after a lengthy investigation. Griffith is now charged with three counts of theft.
LCCC president Thomas Leary said the missing money was discovered during an audit.
"Obviously we are very disappointed when someone betrays the public trust. That in no way has to do with the education at Luzerne County Community College. This was an individual action," said Leary.
Some students we talked to said they`re disappointed about the alleged theft.
"It`s unbelievable, I can`t believe that as a student at this school. It hurts knowing that people do this to us and taking money from us. It`s not fair to us," said Haley Hughes, a student at LCCC.
College officials said since the investigation, new procedures took effect to prevent future thefts.
"It`s good they`re taking steps to doing that and in the future they can prevent people from doing it again. I just can`t believe something like that happened. I`m glad they`re taking steps though," added Hughes.
Griffith is free on bail.