LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- A Jefferson County, Indiana, jail deputy is now out of a job and facing charges for allegedly stealing money from inmates.
Ava Lohrig was arrested Wednesday on 14 counts of official misconduct and one count of theft.
The Jefferson County Indiana Sheriff's Office said a recently released inmate complained that he did not get the proper amount of money on his debit card from his jail funds.
"It's a card that we issue out to the inmates when they are booked in and when they leave and that money is money that was on their inmate trust account while they were here," explained Jefferson County Sheriff Ben Flint.
Flint said an investigation began to determine if the card had been misplaced. That's when Flint said investigators noticed the card hard been used.
Some of the fraudulent transactions took place at businesses in another county. Others were online charges.
"We started looking into that and found security surveillance footage which revealed the jail deputy using that card," Flint said.
Former Jefferson County, Indiana, Jail deputy Ava Lohrig was arrested Wednesday, Aug. 23, 2023 on 14 counts of official misconduct and one count of theft. (Jefferson County Jail booking photo)
On August 23rd, Lohrig was arrested and booked into the Jefferson County Jail.
"It is a little bit of a blow because when we do hire our employees we expect the best of them and sometimes we get let down," said Flint. "We'll move forward and we will instill better practices down in the jail and better training and ensure this doesn't happen again."
Flint said he hopes the public appreciates the department's transparency and commitment to correcting the problem.
"I really do hope the county sees this as kind of a token of trust that I have with them as well as they have in me. They elected me to be the sheriff and uphold the law in the county here and I'm trying to show them in return that I am here to give that to them," he said.
Lohrig has since been fired from her job and is currently in police custody in another county.
Entrance to Jefferson County Sheriff's Office and Jefferson County Jail. (WDRB Image)
Before taking the job in Madison, Lohrig also worked at the Luther Luckett Correctional complex from May 2020 until December 2020. According to her job application for the Madison opening, her reason for leaving Luckett was her commute time.
Flint tells WDRB News the investigation remains ongoing but the department believes it was an isolated incident.
Flint encourages anyone who thinks they may be a victim to call the department's tip line at 812-274-3970. You can also reach out to the sheriff's office by dialing 812-265-2468.
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