A onetime county official accused of taking three quarters of a million dollars in public funds in north Alabama is going to prison.
News outlets report that Judge Pride Tompkins sentenced former Franklin County administrator Crista Lynn Madden to 20 years in prison during a hearing Monday.
The 49-year-old Madden pleaded guilty in March to felony charges of using her office for personal financial gain.
Prosecutors say Madden stole about $754,000 over her more than 10 years as Franklin County's administrator by creating false purchase orders and then putting checks into personal accounts.
Authorities say she confessed when confronted by investigators.
Madden was ordered to repay the money in addition to serving prison time.