Charity Suspects Employee Stole 'Hundreds of Thousands of Dollars'

Hunger Free Vermont, a nonprofit advocacy and education group that works to reduce malnutrition across Vermont, said it suspects a former employee stole significant sums of money from the charity.

"We never thought it would be us," said Marissa Parisi, the organization's executive director. "I think this is one of the hardest things Hunger Free Vermont has ever been through."

Parisi said Hunger Free Vermont's bank branch recently notified her about unusual checks that were issued by an employee who had bookkeeping responsibilities. After examining those transactions closely, Parisi said she suspects the longtime staff member fudged records and used the nonprofit's reserve funds as a personal piggy bank for years.