St. Mary Parish Sheriff Gary Driskell Announces Theft Investigation Leads to Arrest of Another Former St. Mary School Board Employee

Lisa Ann Crochet Powell, 65, Morgan City, LA, was arrested on December 17, 2024, at 2:59 pm for the charges of false accounting, theft (over $25,000), and malfeasance in office.

On August 14, 2024, detectives were made aware of a complaint of significant descrepancy in the school's financial records at Patterson High School. Detectives learned that time frame for the descrepancy spanned from 2020 to 2024. The bookeeper at the time in question was Lisa Powell.

Through the investigation, detectives established that Powell was solely responsible for handling receipts for funds collected and depositing those funds into the school's bank account. As the investigation progressed, numerous discrepancies were found and logged by detectives. At the time of her arrest, the amount of funds missing totaled over $205,000.

A warrant was obtained for Powell's arrest and detectives made contact with her on December 17, 2024.  She was questioned and subsequently transported to the St. Mary Parish Law Enforcement Center for booking. Bail has not been set at this time.

Det. Lt. David Spencer

Public Information Officer

St. Mary Parish Sheriff's Office