Ex-Huntley trustee's wife charged with theft
By JILLIAN DUCHNOWSKI - jduchnowski@nwherald.com
HUNTLEY – A former trustee’s wife is facing a felony theft charge for allegedly charging thousands of dollars of personal items to company credit cards associated with the local Hallmark gift shops she ran.
Janice Hoeft, 53, of 11515 Reed Road, Huntley, allegedly exerted unauthorized control of more than $10,000 and less than $100,000 between December 2002 and August 2005, according to the police complaint.
Hoeft, who is married to former village trustee Terry Hoeft, denied the charges Tuesday evening. She said the LorEnn Hallmark’s two owners were trying to damage her reputation and that of her family but said Huntley police never questioned her.
“I certainly didn’t do anything that they are alleging,” Hoeft said. “I can tell you without doubt that at all times with credit card charges, [co-owner] Philip Waters had receipts.”
Hoeft was released Tuesday after posting 10 percent of her $40,000 bail. Her next court date is Tuesday. If convicted, she could be sentenced to up to seven years in prison.
Waters contacted Huntley police in April, sparking a four-month investigation that included examining several documents, police said in a news release.
The company also filed a civil lawsuit in May alleging that an audit revealed that Hoeft improperly had charged $58,697 to company credit accounts while she was under contract as an operation consultant for as many as five stores.
The charges included $2,912 to Vision of the Seas Cruise Line, $800 in picture frames, $379 in curtains, and $406 to Wynn Las Vegas Hotel and Casino, according to the lawsuit.
LorEnn Ltd. representatives questioned some expenses in March 2005, but Hoeft resigned in August 2005 rather than providing a detailed expense report, according to the lawsuit.
Hoeft disputes that. She said Tuesday that she resigned because she didn’t approve of some of the owners’ business practices.
The civil case is next due in court Sept. 11.
