A former employee of the Bruceton Community Ambulance Service is facing embezzlement charges after allegedly falsely adding hundreds of hours to her time sheets over a four-month period.
Board members of the ambulance service contacted the Preston County Sheriff’s Department in November 2023, after a review of payroll records showed discrepancies.
Deputy J.T. Knotts met with the board members who stated their payroll records indicated that Nicole Overfield, 34, of Tunnelton, added hours to her time sheets that she had not worked between July and October 2023.
According to the deputy’s report, Overfield resigned from the organization in October 2023, but while employed, part of her duties was to handle payroll with the ambulance service’s accountant. After she departed, the alleged fraud was discovered.
Knotts reviewed salary documents for all employees during that four-month period and concluded Overfield was paid for 386.75 hours of time for which she did not work, which amounted to approximately $10,000.
The fraudulent hours allegedly included times when there was another crew on duty and hours when no crew was on duty.
As part of his investigation, Knotts stated he referenced 911 call logs and confirmed that during the times Overfield was the only crew member being paid to work, there were calls that were dispatched and handled by another agency.
In addition, during those times there was no log of communication to the 911 center that Overfield was at the station or a request for 911 to page for another crew member.
In November 2023, Overfield was interviewed at the Clarksburg FBI office by Deputy Knotts and Sgt. A.S. Loudin of the West Virginia State Police. During the interview, Overfield confirmed that when she was employed there, she was tasked with handling payroll for the organization.
After some time, Knotts reported Overfield acknowledged that she had added hours to her time sheet that she did not work and was compensated for those hours. Knotts noted that on multiple occasions Overfield stated she would pay the money back to the agency.
Overfield was arraigned Thursday in Preston County Magistrate Court and was released after posting a $50,000 bond. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for March 8.
