BRIDGETOWN, N.S. - Police in Nova Scotia laid theft and fraud charges Friday against a 50-year-old woman following an investigation into money missing from a financially troubled town.
The investigation began in May, two weeks before the council and mayor of Bridgetown quit en masse amid allegations the town's finances were in disarray.
At the time, the mayor and five councillors said they were stepping down because of the "magnitude and complexity" of the town's money woes and on the advice of lawyers.
The town's solicitor said the council couldn't determine the extent of the town's financial problems when they came to light.
The provincial government launched an external audit that concluded Bridgetown's financial problems may have started as early as May 2006 and continued until earlier this year.
The audit by consulting firm Grant Thornton also said that more than $113,000 was misappropriated, though close to $34,000 was later returned.
Melissa Jane Young of Belle Isle, N.S., has been charged with one count of theft over $5,000 and one count of fraud over $5,000.
She is to appear in provincial court in Annapolis Royal, N.S., on Feb. 6.
RCMP said no additional charges are expected.
Bridgetown, a former shipbuilding town of 970, is about 130 kilometres west of Halifax.
