Stovall Sentenced in Theft from Gas Company

A former employee of Patriot Gas Company of Vidalia has been sentenced to serve time in prison and pay restitution following a conviction on theft by taking charges.

Teleshia Stovall, a former secretary at Patriot Gas, was convicted September 17 on three counts of theft by taking over $115,000 between January 1, 2016, and July 24, 2018.

A previous newspaper article reported that the owners of the company met with police to report that they believed Stovall had been stealing money from the company. The discrepancy in the company’s finances was discovered in an audit. The coow ners told police they believed that when a cash payment was made, Stovall was pocketing the cash. Stovall had been with the company for five years before the discovery was made. Stovall was sentenced to a term of 40 years, with five years to be served in prison, and ordered to pay $115,118 in restitution, Middle Judicial Circuit District Attorney Tripp Fitzner said.