Some details related to theft from the Elmore County Food Pantry and its thrift store are now known. Plus, bonds for former board president Jeff Andrews and director Kathy Hall have been lowered following their arrest for first-degree theft.
Court documents state the Wetumpka Police Department was called to the Elmore County Food Pantry Thrift Store about missing money on March 8, 2025. The call comes after employees had asked about a raise in October 2024 and told no due to the store not making a profit and a confrontation between an employee with Andrews and Hall over missing money.
According to court documents, between July 1, 2024, and Dec. 31, 2024, $19,325.92 in cash was taken from the Elmore County Food Pantry Thrift Store.
“Over several months, Andrews persuaded Hall, the food pantry director, to leave funds from thrift store sales outside the safe so that he could use them for personal reasons,” an affidavit for warrant states. “In addition to this, Andrews took funds directly from the thrift store’s safe, depositing only a portion of the money into the charity’s bank account.”
The incident report states there is supposed to be video surveillance in the office where the drop safe is located but the cameras have not been operational for an “unknown period of time.”
Andrews and Hall were arrested on April 10 and charged with first-degree theft. They had a $30,000 cash bond available to them.
Both were before Elmore County District Court Judge Glen Goggans Wednesday. Andrews had requested a preliminary and bond hearing. Hall had requested only a bond hearing.
Andrews waived his preliminary hearing.
Goggans gave both a $20,000 regular bond on the conditions they returned any property, keys and debit cards through their attorneys that belong to the food pantry and thrift store.
Andrews and Hall posted bail Thursday.
As the issue developed in the food pantry, former Elmore County Food Pantry board president Larry Dozier was asked to return to the organization. Last week, he said the food pantry is still operational.
“We are still serving our clients at the food pantry and the thrift store is open,” Dozier said last week. “There are some new faces around but it is business as usual.”
