Ex-DSCO Capt. Scott Beard gets 5 years for theft, money-laundering

Former Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office captain Scott Beard was sentenced Thursday to five years in prison and three years of supervision upon release in U.S District Court in Eugene for theft and money laundering.

Beard pleaded guilty on May 23 to two counts each of theft and money laundering arising from a series of crimes that occurred while he was employed at the sheriff’s office.

During the sentencing phase, the U.S. Probation Services prepared a pre-sentence report for the court listing the details of the crime, Beard’s background and the impact of the crimes.

Deschutes County Sheriff Shane Nelson and Crook County District Attorney Daina Vitolins made statements to the court Thursday. Both testified to the impacts on the citizens of Deschutes County, as well as the Central Oregon law enforcement community, according to a news release from the sheriff’s office.

Beard’s lawyer asked for a sentence of probation to allow Beard to continue with treatment, be with his family and to work to pay restitution.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office had requested the 60-month sentence, an upward departure from the federal sentencing guideline, based on violation of public trust by a law enforcement officer.

Judge Michael McShane sentenced Beard to five years, saying he found the 63 thefts gave Beard plenty of opportunity to reflect on and change his behavior.

McShane said Beard’s actions as a law enforcement officer in a position of trust violated that trust and negatively impacted the law enforcement profession.

The judge also revoked Beard’s release and he was immediately taken into custody from the court.

Beard’s crimes came to the attention of sheriff’s command and business staff after Nelson ordered his staff to follow more specific recommendations received from the county auditor in July 2015.

Last September, an internal audit found discrepancies in accounting records in the audit of county funds intended as use in drug investigations. Beard was placed on administrative leave after the discovery of the discrepancies.

The sheriff contacted the FBI and U.S. Attorney’s Office for assistance in investigating after the audit discovered the discrepancies.

Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office command and business staff assisted FBI and IRS investigators in compiling and analyzing sheriff’s office business records and determined that Beard committed a series of thefts spanning a period from about April of 2014 to September 2015.

The investigation revealed that Beard forged signatures and fraudulently altered documents to make it appear that funds and evidence were properly accounted for and lied to the sheriff’s office and other law enforcement personnel to conceal his crimes, the sheriff’s office said.

Beard stole money designated for use in drug investigations and stole money and property seized in drug investigations. The total of the thefts was about $205,000.

During the investigation, Beard told federal agents that he donated $10,000 of the stolen money to a South African orphanage. But federal prosecutors said orphanage records show that his actual donation was less than $92. In reality, Beard laundered the money through the bank account of his mistress, Krista Jean Mudrick, showering her with cash to support a lifestyle that included vacations and multiple cosmetic surgeries for Mudrick.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office indicted Beard in February for two counts of Theft Concerning Program Receiving Federal Funds, two counts of Money Laundering, one count of Passport Fraud, and two forfeiture allegations.

The sheriff’s office said the investigation indicates that no other agency staff acted with Beard in committing these crimes.

“Thank you to the FBI, IRS and U.S. Attorney’s Office for their hard work and effort in investigating and prosecuting this case, and also my thanks to my Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office co-workers whose diligence in the audit brought these crimes to the attention of the Command Staff at the Sheriff’s Office,” Nelson said.

Sheriff Nelson concluded saying, “I am relieved that he is being held accountable for stealing taxpayer money and violating the trust of our citizens. The system worked. I thank the citizens of Deschutes County for their continued support of our office. I am happy for the citizens and the employees of the sheriff’s office that we now have closure in this matter.”

The government alleged Beard laundered some of the cash to pay expenses on behalf of his co-defendant, Mudrick, a former sheriff’s office employee charged with making false statements to the FBI and IRS about Beard’s expenditures of the ill-gotten gains. She is expected to plead guilty next week to making false statements to federal agents.

U.S. Attorney Billy J. Williams said “Law enforcement officers who steal public funds harm the entire community. We rely on the honesty and integrity of every law enforcement officer to do the right thing.

“Beard’s greed undermined the good work done by his fellow officers and this sentence sends a clear signal that crimes committed by law enforcement officers will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law,” he added.

Special Agent in Charge Darrell Waldon of IRS Criminal Investigation commented, “Criminals are sentenced to prison every day for actions driven by greed, but the level of greed that Beard sunk to is really beyond belief. This is an individual who, as a member of the law enforcement community, took an oath to uphold the law.”

The FBI and IRS-CI jointly investigated this case and it was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christopher Cardani and Frank R Papagni, Jr.