Michael Spears (Photo courtesy of Baxter County Sheriff’s Office)
A former county animal shelter manager charged with switching out a new washer and dryer set for less expensive machines pled guilty to theft of property charges in Baxter County Circuit Court Monday.
Forty-four-year-old Michael Thomas Spears, who listed an address in Midway on court papers, was sentenced to three years probation.
In mid-October 2020, the county purchased a new Speed Queen washer and dryer from a local appliance store for use at the animal shelter located in Midway.
The machines, along with hoses, a dryer cord, vent and clamps, were delivered October 20, 2020, and set up by employees from the store.
The bill of slightly more than $2,000 was paid by the county.
According to the probable cause affidavit, Spears quit his job at the end of 2022, and the shelter was closed until a replacement could be hired.
In mid-May, an animal control warden contacted the sheriff’s office that the washing machine at the shelter was not draining properly.
The appliance store sent a repairman to look at the machine, and he discovered the units sold by the store were missing, and a less expensive washer and dryer had been installed in their place.
A sheriff’s investigator conducted a non-custodial interview with Spears. The former animal shelter manager said he had accidentally placed a “slip ring” into the washer causing damage.
He said the store that sold the units to the county did not consider what had happened to cause the damage as covered under warranty.
Spears said he contacted another appliance repairman who gave him a $700 estimate to repair the damage.
The repairman is alleged to have told Spears he would do a “no cash swap” for the Speed Queen units and replace them with others.
Spears said he was concerned that he would be held responsible for repairing the damage to the new washer and agreed to the swap.
He said he made the trade without consulting then Baxter County Judge Mickey Pendergrass, and he made no report to anyone about the swap.
Investigators talked to previous employees at the shelter, and none could remember the new washer and dryer being in the building more than a day or two.
One person said when she had talked to Spears about the new equipment, he told her he had sent the machines back because “they did not fit.”
At the time the probable cause affidavit was written in mid-July last year, the new Speed Queen washer and dryer had not been returned, and the county had to buy a new set.
It was alleged that Spears was unable to give investigators any identifying information about the unnamed repairman who had suggested the no cash swap.
It was announced in court that Spears will pay more than $2,000 in victim restitution in full.
WebReadyTM Powered by WireReady® NSI