Illinois Public School Official Steals $1.5 Million in Chicken Wings From Suburban Chicago Schools

A former public school official in Illinois was accused of stealing over $1.5 million worth of chicken wings from schools in a Chicago suburb.

According to CBS Chicago, Vera Liddell, 66, the former director of food services at Harvey School District 152, is facing charges of financial crimes and theft exceeding $1 million. The Cook County State's Attorney's Office said Liddell orchestrated a slow-motion heist scheme that resulted in the theft of over $1.5 million in taxpayer money.

The alleged scheme reportedly happened between July 2020 and February 2022 at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, when authorities ordered schools to be closed and replaced with online classes. Prosecutors said the school district still provided meals for pickup even though children were learning remotely.

They noted that Liddell placed hundreds of unauthorized orders for food, including 11,000 cases of chicken wings through school district vendor Gordon Food Service, that never made it to schoolchildren. Prosecutors said these purchases were made separately from the school district's legitimate orders.

Routine Audit in Chicago Suburb Schools Discovered Illinois' Former Public School Official's Fraud Scheme

According to the prosecutors, Gordon Food Service believed all the purchases made by Vera Liddell were authorized and billed the district that paid the entire bills. Prosecutors noted that the illicit purchases bore Liddell's signature, Law & Crime reported.

They said the chicken wings were not served to students as they contained bones. Surveillance footage reportedly showed the former public school official arriving at Gordon Food Service to pick up the food orders and put them in a cargo van owned by the school district.

However, court records noted that the food was "never brought to the school or provided to the students," the New York Post reported. It is still unclear where the chicken wings ended up.

Liddell's scheme was reportedly discovered after the district manager conducted a routine mid-year audit in January 2022 and found that food costs were already $300,000 over its annual budget, with the school year only about halfway through.

Prosecutors said all food service provider employees knew Liddell by name because of the massive amount of chicken wings she purchased. District funds were reportedly used to pay for the food.

Illinois' Former Public School Official Faces Theft Case After Stealing Millions Worth of Chicken Wings From Chicago Suburb Schools

The Cook County State's Attorney's Office investigated the case, and the former public school official was arrested and charged. Vera Liddell is being held at the Cook County Jail with a $150,000 bond, WGN9 reported.

Harvey School District 152's interim superintendent Lela Bridges told WGN9 that she was aware of the case but had no comment due to the ongoing probe. The district, which consists of five schools, has a total enrollment of 1,600 students, with more than 80% qualifying as "low income."

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Bert Hoover

WATCH: Vera Liddell Allegedly Stole $1.5M in Chicken Wings From Illinois Schools - From New York Post