The state auditor released details Wednesday on the embezzlement investigation into a small Oklahoma town.

Auditor Cindy Byrd says nearly $60,000 was missing from the city of Jones from 2016 to 2019.

The audit found the Court Clerk’s office received municipal fines and fees, but did not deposit the funds and record the collections as required by law.

State investigators arrested former assistant city clerk Pamela Lucas, 69, on charges of embezzlement. She has admitted to stealing money by creating false receipts, altering or destroying documents and changing citation amounts.

“This situation was easily preventable. There was little-to-no oversight over the entire court process,” Byrd said. “Court fines and fees are earmarked for the purpose of strengthening public safety. The findings of our audit clearly show that a person or persons in the Jones Court Clerk’s office abused the trust of the taxpayers by misappropriating a large amount of funds. As a result, the citizens of Jones are left to pay for critical government services that should have been funded with fines.”

Investigators are looking into who else might be involved because about $21,000 of the unposted payments went missing after Lucas was terminated in February 2019.