Lithonia City Clerk Alisa Dent Dupes Mayor Out Of Thousands

LITHONIA, Ga. -- Prosecutors say a fired clerk for the city of Lithonia duped the mayor into signing four blank city checks the worker then deposited in her personal bank account.

An audit revealed Alisa Dent stole $27,000 in city funds.

Channel 2 was in a DeKalb County courtroom as Dent pled not guilty to theft by taking by a govement employee. Mayor Tonya Peterson was also in court.

Prosecutors said Dent misled the mayor when she asked her to sign the checks.

"She actually took them to the mayor and the mayor did in fact sign some of the checks having been told that these blank checks need to be signed because there was a misprint on some other checks," prosecutors John Melvin said.

Melvin also told Judge Linda W. Hunter that Peterson felt uncomfortable signing blank checks and said she asked Dent to also get the Vice Mayor to sign the checks as another form of security. It wasn't clear in court if the Vice Mayor also signed the checks.

Judge Hunter seemed to find it odd that someone would sign blank checks.

"I guess I don't have that kind of faith in ... I wouldn't even give a blank check to, I don't know. Maybe a relative or close relative," Hunter said.

Channel 2’s GA Daily News tried to ask the Peterson after court why she signed the blank checks.

"Well actually I still can't discuss the case. I'm so sorry. I wish I could. I can't talk about it," Peterson said.

Dent said almost nothing in court, Jones said. Her attoey said she's innocent. "That's correct. We're saying she's not guilty and we're ready to proceed to trial," attoey Steve Roberts said.

Peterson said mechanisms are in place to prevent this type of theft from happening again.