Former Ky. county economic development official sentenced for theft of taxpayer money
A former local official in northeastern Kentucky has been sentenced to three months in prison for stealing tens of thousands of dollars in taxpayer money.
The sentence for Robert Brian Allen includes seven months on home detention after he is released from prison, and restitution to the Greenup County Fiscal Court totaling $81,729.
Allen was economic development and tourism director for the county when the thefts occurred between 2016 and 2019.
He had checks diverted to this personal account, received payments he was not entitled to and used a credit card issued to the tourism commission for personal expenses and cash withdrawals, according to his plea agreement.
An earlier court document said Allen stole about $100,000, but that was an approximation and accounting showed the total was lower, said Allen’s attorney, Michael J. Curtis.
The prosecutor, Assistant U.S. Attorney Kenneth R. Taylor, said in a court document that Allen’s misappropriation of public funds was “unambiguous, flagrant, and motivated by self-interest.”
But Taylor said it appeared the thefts were the result of Allen’s alcoholism.
Friends and family members said in letters that Allen was a well-liked, devoted family man from a prominent family who worked to improve the economy in Greenup County, but was overcome by addiction.
Allen has undergone treatment and is doing better, according to supporters and Curtis.
U.S. District Judge David L. Bunning sentenced Allen on Tuesday in federal court in Ashland. He must report to prison next month.
