Two West Virginia sheriff’s office workers indicted in $3M fraud scheme

Two former employees of the Berkeley County Sheriff’s Office in West Virginia have been indicted on federal charges of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and multiple counts of bank fraud, U.S. Attorney Matthew L. Harvey announced.

A federal grand jury returned the five-count indictment against Barbara Gail Gooden, 60, and Lisa Lee French, 48, both of Martinsburg. Prosecutors allege the pair carried out a scheme spanning nearly two decades — from 2007 to 2024 — in which they embezzled cash payments collected by the Sheriff’s Office and manipulated conservatorship and estate bank accounts administered by the office.

According to the indictment, Gooden and French issued fraudulent checks, forged signatures, misused a signature stamp and diverted funds for personal use. In total, the defendants allegedly executed more than 700 fraudulent transactions, including over 550 forged checks, withdrawing funds from at least 59 conservator bank accounts. The alleged scheme resulted in the misappropriation of more than $3 million in taxpayer and conservator funds, prosecutors said.

The fraudulent checks were drawn from conservator accounts and made out either to the “Berkeley County Sheriff & Treasurer” or to a private business, according to the indictment, with the proceeds allegedly benefiting Gooden and French personally.

“This office will continue to safeguard taxpayer resources, protect the interests of vulnerable individuals, and ensure that those entrusted with public responsibilities are held fully accountable for violations of that trust,” Harvey said.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Berkeley County Sheriff’s Office and the West Virginia State Auditor’s Office conducted the investigation. The Berkeley County Prosecutor’s Office and the Berkeley County Commission cooperated in the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew Cogar is prosecuting.

Federal prosecutors are also seeking forfeiture of any property derived from the alleged offenses, including a money judgment.

An indictment is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.

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