TUNBRIDGE — The now-former town manager of Williamstown, Vt., has been arrested on charges of embezzling more than $180,000 from the Tunbridge Volunteer Fire Department over a 10-year period.
Jacqueline Higgins, 63, of Vershire, who was hired by the Tunbridge department as a bookkeeper in 1994, is alleged to have stolen $186,000 from 2014 through 2025, Vermont State Police said in a news release.
The Fire Department first contacted the State Police in Royalton on Aug. 11 about “a possible embezzlement,” the release said.
State Police reviewed the department’s financial records, which revealed the embezzlement and identified Higgins as the suspect. An audit uncovered “discrepancies in financial records,” the release said. Higgins resigned as bookkeeper.
Police arrested her on Wednesday, transporting her to the Berlin Barracks for processing. She was released with a citation. Her arraignment is scheduled for Dec. 31 at 8:30 a.m. in the Criminal Division of Vermont Superior Court in Chelsea.
“The alleged actions do not reflect the values or conduct of the Tunbridge Volunteer Fire Department, our firefighters, or our volunteers. We are committed to transparency, accountability, and service to our community,” the Fire Department wrote in a social media post on Thursday.
The Fire Department bookkeeper position has been filled by a Tunbridge resident “who has the training and experience to manage our finances professionally and appropriately,” the Department wrote in a statement to the Valley News.
To prevent future instances of embezzlement, the Department has instituted an external review of its books and added additional oversight of its finances, the statement continued.
As for how the embezzlement continued undetected for so many years, “Unfortunately, the Tunbridge Volunteer Fire Department is not unlike many local community service organizations across Vermont. We are volunteers managing volunteers,” the statement continued.
“Just as we have taken great efforts to reform our governance and oversight since the discovery of this situation, we hope to inspire other organizations to account for their own fiscal oversight and take corrective action, if needed, as soon as possible.”
In an effort to recover the embezzled money, the Fire Department has “been in close contact with our insurance company and has confirmed our ability to make a claim for loss… A final accounting may not be possible until the criminal investigation is over, however,” the statement said.
As of Thursday, Higgins, who had served as Williamstown’s town manager since 2011, is no longer in the role, town clerk Barbara Graham said.
A Wednesday evening email to Higgins’ Williamstown email address was not returned. A message that was left on Higgins’ home phone on Thursday also was not immediately returned.
The Selectboard is working to determine whether Higgins will resign or whether she is fired, Selectboard chairman Larry Hebert said in a Thursday phone interview.
“We haven’t come to exactly how it’s going to work yet, but (Higgins) won’t be back as town manager,” Hebert said.
The Selectboard is in the process of looking for someone to fill Higgins’ role, Hebert said.
But the Selectboard might ask Higgins to help train the new town manager. “We decided that probably the best thing for the town is to help with the transition if she wants to,” Hebert said.
The town’s finances are managed by the town treasurer, Hebert said, so the Selectboard isn’t concerned that Higgins could have embezzled from the town. “She handled no money,” he said.
This breaking news story was updated at 2:45 p.m. Thursday.