Sharon L. Whispell, the former Tamaqua Salvation Army major, was sentenced to Schuylkill County Prison on Wednesday in front of a Schuylkill County judge.

Last summer, the Salvation Army found discrepancies in paperwork totaling $116,913.33 dating back to 2015. An audit illustrated $80,313.37 in fraudulent purchases submitted to the Salvation Army for reimbursement between October 2015 and June 2019, and $36,599.96 in fraudulent purchases submitted to The United Way between April 2017 and 2019 for reimbursement.

Tamaqua’s Cpl. Thomas Rodgers was contacted by Maj. Cornell of the Salvation Army on Aug. 6, 2019, to inform him of the discoveries. The next day, a complaint was prepared, and a warrant was issued for Whispell’s arrest. She was arrested in York on Aug. 8. Whispell’s Salvation Army officership was terminated prior to her arrest.

On Wednesday, she received an incarceration sentencing of 11-and-a-half to 23 months and was ordered to pay back in restitution $80,313.37.

“Unfortunately, she had a long history with the Salvation Army. It’s sad to see it end that way,” said Schuylkill County District Attorney Michael O’Pake. “She was a trusted employee of the Salvation Army. Unfortunately, sometimes they’re the employees that commit the crime, and you have the Salvation Army that’s out there trying to do good for people and they become a victim. It’s a sad ending to a sad story.”

Whispell, 53, of Georgia, pleaded no contest to charges of risking a catastrophe and four counts of recklessly endangering another person.

Tamaqua police filed a second case against her stating that she started a fire at the Salvation Army on May 12 of last year. She received five years of probation consecutive to the first case and must pay $25,000 restitution to the Salvation Army.

The Salvation Army said in a statement, “This release concerns the unfortunate events involving Sharon Whispell that culminated in her pleading no contest to a number of charges including those of theft and recklessly endangering others, related to the May 12, 2019, fire at The Salvation Army Tamaqua Corps. The Salvation Army is sad such events occurred but understands that no one, including an individual who wore our uniform, is above the law.”

Whispell was given a delayed reporting date. No victims spoke at the sentencing.

“We at The Salvation Army are so very grateful that no one was injured in the fire,” continued the Salvation Army press release. “Our paramount concern is with the Tamaqua community and the people we dedicate ourselves to serve. The Salvation Army will continue to work to earn the trust of the Tamaqua community. We hope that our long record of dedicated service, and transparency throughout this matter, will offer consolation and confidence.”

Chris Reber contributed to this report.