Excerpts from the rrstar.com:
A firefighter was sentenced Monday to probation for four years after pleading guilty to charges of theft of more than $10,000 from the fraternal organization affiliated with Cherry Valley Fire Protection District.
In addition to probation, Nicholas Homerding was ordered by Winnebago County Judge John Lowry to pay $16,225 in restitution to the Cherry Valley Firefighters Association.
Homerding had previously served as a board member and treasurer for the association that raised several thousand dollars a year to pay for t-shirts, student scholarships, and annual picnics for the firefighters.
He embezzled the money between Jan. 1, 2013, and July 1, 2015. The association has since tightened its bylaws to require the signatures of two board officers on any check.
Homerding, a Rockford resident, was a paid on-call Cherry Valley firefighter. He was placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of the case after being indicted in February. He has since been fired from the department and ordered to have no contact with the Cherry Valley Firefighters Association.
