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SALT LAKE CITY — A man who worked for the Utah Transit Authority for 20 years was sentenced Thursday to just under one year in the county jail and future probation for stealing around $2.3 million from UTA fare boxes.
David Leroy Healy, 56, was sentenced to 364 days in the Salt Lake County Jail after he pleaded guilty to a second-degree felony charge of a pattern of unlawful activity and a third-degree felony charge of misuse of public funds. Third District Judge Elizabeth Hruby-Mills also ruled that after he serves jail time, Healy will be placed on probation, be required to have full-time employment, and be prohibited from being employed in a fiduciary position.
Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill released a statement Thursday thanking those who worked to find justice.
"Public Institutions belong to the people. In this case, a government employee violated the public trust, that trust has been restored and the defendant held accountable in court," Gill said. "The purpose of government is to do good and provide a service, it is not a personal piggy bank for a dishonest employee."
Healy, who was employed as a fare equipment maintenance technician, collected buckets of coins and cash from bus fare boxes and deposited the money into his own accounts, according to charging documents in the case. The investigation of Healy began when a witness observed Healy take large buckets of coins into his house, charging documents say. He later exchanged those buckets for cash at a local store, allegedly telling the cashier that he owned an arcade.
During the sentencing hearing Thursday, deputy district attorney Brian Williams said the bins full of sorted bills and coins found in Healy's house contained about $1.4 million dollars. That's in addition to multiple bank accounts with hundreds of thousands of dollars and some vehicles that were likely purchased with the money, he said.
It is hard to know how much money Healy actually took because of difficulties in tracking cash, Williams said, and there could be even more money that was taken but not accounted for in the $2.3 million in restitution that Healy was required to pay.
"He didn't spend it, but he certainly kept it for his own use," Williams said.
Healy's defense attorney, Catherine Cleveland, argued that her client had good motives behind his actions. She said when he first began taking money from UTA, Healy's goal was to save the money so his sons could go to college but his actions got out of control.
"I think he's actually grateful that he was caught," Cleveland said.
She said Healy would likely never be in trouble again and asked the court to sentence him to probation only, noting that he currently is employed and is supporting one of his children.
Williams argued that although he does not think Healy is dangerous, he should be sent to prison as punishment for his actions in addition to probation and paying back the money he took.
Healy also spoke at the hearing, telling the court he didn't know how much money he had taken.
"I did not realize the scope of what I had done. I did not realize it was even close to that kind of money," he said.
He also apologized to UTA and said that it was a great job for the 20 years he worked there. He acknowledged that he knew he had hurt and lost friends he made there because of his actions.
In the end, the Hruby-Mills decided on county jail time and probation, plus the $2.3 million in restitution. The judge said the court hears cases for people charged with third-degree misdemeanors for failing to pay to use UTA multiple times, and this crime is significantly more harmful to the agency
"It's staggering, the numbers that we're talking about here," she said.
David Wilkins with the Attorney General's office, who represented the UTA in the case, said that the money Healy took is significant, and would be enough to pay for about five or six new buses. He said that he was present when the money that was kept in Healy's home was counted after it was seized and that it was like something from a movie.
Initially, Healy was also charged with money laundering and six additional counts of misuse of public money, but those charges were dismissed as part of a plea deal.
Contributing: Pat Reavy
