McArthur faces fraud charges

The former executive director of the Post Falls Senior Center will appear in court this month to face felony fraud charges.

Alison McArthur, 48, who ran the center for six years before being fired a year ago, is accused of stealing money from the center to repair her car, pay her personal telephone bills and pay for a 2016 trip to Disneyland, according to court records.

A preliminary hearing in Coeur d’Alene magistrate court was postponed last week and rescheduled for Nov. 29 when prosecutors will present evidence to substantiate the felony charge.

Among her duties, McArthur kept the center’s books. Starting more than a year ago she prohibited board members from reviewing the finances, according to a police report.

“While McArthur was at the Center she was in full control of the Center’s finances … toward the end, McArthur would not let anyone look at the books and (the board) purely went off what McArthur was telling (them),” wrote Detective Kip Hollenbeck in his report.

The report details expenditures from financial statements, many of them in the $200 to $300 range, that were unaccounted for, some of the payments were later reimbursed. Two charges, including one to the Desert Palms Hotel at Disneyland and for a rental car were not itemized.

“I am unable to request charges as it did not take place in Kootenai County,” Hollenbeck wrote.

Three years ago, while McArthur was at the helm of the center, the Idaho Lottery Commission revoked the center’s bingo license over a violation of record-keeping laws, according to reports.

If she’s found guilty, McArthur could serve no more than five years in prison and pay a $50,000 fine.

McArthur is known for serving on the Post Falls School Board, the Post Falls Chamber of Commerce and with Post Falls Junior Miss.