Former City of Sierra Vista Administrator Sentenced to Jail

(Phoenix, Ariz. – Oct. 26, 2005)  Former Sierra Vista city official Gary McPherran was sentenced to six months in the Cochise County Jail earlier this week.  He also was ordered to pay more than $50,000 in fines and restitution after pleading guilty to one count conflict of interest and one count theft.

McPherran served as the City of Sierra Vista Director of Administrative Services from 1999 to 2002.  He was responsible for managing four divisions:  Human Resources, Purchasing, Finance and Information Technology. Prior to this promotion, McPherran was the City’s finance manager for more than three years.

The Arizona Auditor General’s Office conducted an audit that revealed that over a period of three years, McPherran may have embezzled at least $25,990.  The money was used to pay for personal travel to Arizona cities, California and Nevada as well as purchasing personal items including concert tickets, alcohol and cigarettes.  The audit concluded that McPherran misused the City’s travel expense process and credit card privileges to carry out the theft.  The audit findings were released in January 2005.

Assistant Attorneys General Steve Duplissis, Jane McLaughlin and Todd Lawson prosecuted this case.