HARDWICK – Representatives of three nonprofit organizations provided brief updates this week, after last week filing police reports about Wolcott resident Laurel Schoop and placing liens on property she owns.
Schoop is alleged to have embezzled funds during her time as bookkeeper for NEKarts, the Hardwick Downtown Partnership (HDP) and the East Hardwick Fire District (EHFD) .
In the Hardwick Police Department (HPD) reports, HDP and NEKarts allege Schoop used her check signing authority to write 64 checks totalling $8,866.19 from October 2024 to January this year.
According to John Mandeville, EHFD treasurer, they were told a check for the district was put in the mail Saturday as an effort to “make the organization whole.” He said Schoop had been working with EHFD for two or three years, but is no longer serving as its bookkeeper.
Gary Michaels, Hardwick Downtown Partnership treasurer, said Schoop began working with them as a bookkeeper in 2024. Their relationship with her has since been terminated. Shari Cornish declined to comment for the Downtown Partnership, referring a caller instead to HPD.
Schoop has had several interactions with the judicial system and police in the last year. Both Bank of America (BoA) and Barclays Bank Delaware filed cases in Lamoille County Small Claims Court for unpaid credit card debt, March 14, 2024. Judgement was awarded to Barclays on November 20, 2024, for $3,032.11 and to BoA the following day for $6,330.46.
Citibank filed another case against her for an unpaid credit card debt, December 10, 2024, and the Lamoille County Sheriff Department issued her a citation New Year’s Eve, December 31, 2024, for violating the state speed limit by 21 to 30 miles per hour. Disposition in that case indicates it was unanswered on January 27, and payment is due.
Last week Schoop was issued a citation to appear in Caledonia Superior Court to be arraigned on the HDP and NEKarts charges, March 24.
Investigation of the EHFD charges, whose lien on Schoop’s Wolcott property is for $8,043, is ongoing.
Editor’s note: an earlier version of this article misidentified Gary Michaels as the NEKarts Treasurer.
Raymonda Parchment is a Hardwick Gazette reporter. She recently graduated from Vermont State University - Castleton with a Bachelor’s Degree in English. She is a strong supporter of freedom of speech, and the right to publish information, opinions, and ideas without censorship or restraint. She is a lifelong lover of the written word, and is excited to join the team as a staff member.
