Former LW Athletic Secretary Pleads Guilty To Theft: Officials

NEW LENOX, IL —A former athletic secretary for Lincoln-Way Central High School in New Lenox pleaded guilty to felony theft Wednesday, according to the Will County State's Attorney's office.

Mellisa McGrath, 54, of Manhattan, was ordered Wednesday by a Will County judge to pay approximately $44,854 in restitution as part of the guilty plea and her "Second Chance Probation Order," according to court documents.

McGrath paid the restitution Wednesday using $20,000 that was applied from her bond and a cashier's check in the amount of $24,854.01 to cover the remaining amount, court documents showed.

McGrath was charged with multiple felonies in 2019 for stealing more than $44,800 from Lincoln-Way Central's athletic booster club.

McGrath was arrested Nov. 22, 2019. She had originally been charged with 15 offenses — including 10 other counts of theft, two counts of identity theft and two counts of forgery — but those charges were dropped as part of her guilty plea to a single count of felony theft, according to Will County State's Attorney spokeswoman Carole Cheney.

In August 2019, Lincoln-Way Community High School District 210 found "suspicious financial transgressions" on the accounting books of the Lincoln-Way Athletic Boosters Club, according to previous Patch reports. The district conducted an internal investigation and believed McGrath was running two sets of financial books in order to fraudulently take money from the club.

The school district contacted Will County Sheriff's Office, and it opened its own investigation, also in August 2019. That investigation found $30,000 in Booster funds missing from August 2017 through April 2019.

In a statement at the time, Lincoln-Way officials said:

"While developing the annual budget, Lincoln-Way 210 administration uncovered financial discrepancies in the Lincoln-Way Central Athletic Department. The administration notified the independent inspector general who conducted an investigation. Lincoln-Way administration also investigated the discrepancies, resulting in the resignation of one Lincoln-Way employee. All information was turned over to the Will County Sheriff's Department, and no further comment can be made at this time, as this is an ongoing investigation."

Related:

• Lincoln-Way Secretary Embezzled $30K From Athletic Boosters: Cops
• Lincoln-Way Booster Club Financial Info Turned Over To Sheriff
• Lincoln-Way Employee Resigns After Financial Discrepancies: D210