RUTHERFORDTON — Former sheriff’s office employee, Lacie Felicia Boykins, 40, of Shelby who embezzled $85,790 from RCSD received no jail time in her plea deal. Boykins had pleaded guilty to five counts of embezzlement of cash proceeds by a public official/trustee on Sept. 30, 2020. Her crimes were committed over a 5-year period, but Boykins received a suspended sentence.
In her former position as an administrative specialist with the Rutherford County Sheriff’s Office, Boykins handled the county’s concealed-carry permits. Cash payments for permits are $95; renewals cost $85.
On Jan. 11 a coworker reported possible embezzlement activities. On Jan. 23, Boykins was placed on administrative leave while the Sheriff’s Department conducted an internal investigation. Criminal charges were filed on July 24, 2020.
Boykin’s sentence included a minimum of 6 months and a maximum of 17 months incarceration suspended for 60 months supervised probation. Boykins is required to make full restitution of the embezzled monies. Boykins is to complete 40 hours of community service. Fees for her probation supervision and community service were waived. Boykins began her employment by the sheriff’s office on May 4, 2012 with an annual salary of $32,673.
In order to have have transparency and an unbiased investigation most law enforcement agencies ask the State Bureau of Investigation(SBI) to conduct internal investigations. Instead, Rutherford County Sheriff Chris Francis opted to keep the investigation in-house.
