Prichard Finance Director Arrested for Overtime Fraud

Former finance director of Prichard, Kimberly Gardner Wilson, was taken into custody after being charged with theft. She had been dismissed by Mayor Carletta Davis in early June amid a power struggle with the city council over financial reporting.

Her successor, Patricia Scott, quickly told the mayor and council that the city’s books were in disarray. New payroll software caused errors, and she found issues with garnishments, unpaid invoices, missing payroll records and other accounting gaps.

Wilson turned herself in at the Mobile County Metro Jail on a Friday night and was released on bond an hour later. Prosecutors allege she fraudulently claimed about $3,933.60 by entering unauthorized overtime into the ADP payroll system, leading to a first-degree theft by deception charge.

The case will go to arraignment on August 31. Investigators have also been probing corruption in the Prichard police department, but the complaint does not link Wilson’s alleged fraud to that separate probe.