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OGDEN — A past president of the Northern Utah Autism Program has admitted to stealing from the organization.
Rebecca Irene Campos, 31, pleaded guilty Jan. 26 to a reduced charge of theft, a third-degree felony, as part of a plea deal. She was originally charged with a second-degree felony. She faces a potential sentence of up to five years in prison when she is sentenced March 23.
Campos told police she initially took $5,000 from the program, then "quit counting the funds she was using after that," according to charges filed in 2nd District Court.
"(Campos) admitted to using the funds for her personal use due to financial difficulties," court documents state.
The money was taken from donations made to the organization between September 2015 and August 2016, according to the charges. At the time, Campos served as the group's "parent president."
The Northern Utah Autism Program is an Ogden-based preschool program for children with autism or pervasive developmental disorder that "focuses on attending behaviors, language and cognition, self-help and social skills, and parent contact," according to its Facebook page.
As part of the plea deal, Campos will pay restitution and will be eligible to have the conviction reduced to a misdemeanor after successfully completing her sentence and any probation that's ordered, court documents state.
A search of court records shows Campos has no significant prior criminal history in Utah.
