OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) – Elgin’s former postmaster has pleaded guilty to theft of public funds and filing a false tax return.
U.S. Attorney Sanford Coats says 63-year-old James E. Draheim of Elgin entered the guilty pleas on Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Oklahoma City.
Coats says that between October 2005 and September 2009, Draheim took money from postal customers for bulk mailings but did not fully credit their account. Coats says he then embezzled the difference.
Draheim faces up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. He has agreed to pay $642,808 in restitution to the U.S. Postal Service and additional restitution for taxes owed between 2005 and 2008.
His attorney, Jared B Cunningham of Blanchard, did not immediately return a telephone call seeking comment