Irony Alert: Former Head of Dallas Crime Stoppers Convicted of Wire, Tax Fraud

In 2010, Theadora Ross was a senior corporal with the Dallas Police Department and the officer in charge of Dallas Crime Stoppers, the program that offers thousands in cash rewards to tipsters who give information leading to arrest and indictment of criminals. Now, she is neither of those things. Last...

By Eric Nicholson

August 23, 2012

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In 2010, Theadora Ross was a senior corporal with the Dallas Police Department and the officer in charge of Dallas Crime Stoppers, the program that offers thousands in cash rewards to tipsters who give information leading to arrest and indictment of criminals. Now, she is neither of those things.

Last January, Ross was indicted for stealing, with the help of an accomplice, $250,000 in would-be reward money. According to the indictment, Ross would send a list of the rewards to be paid each month to JP Morgan Chase, which would then disperse the cash from North Texas Crime Commission accounts. A lot of the payments were for legitimate tips, but a lot were fake tips that Ross' codefendant, Malva Delley, would collect on.

Delley pleaded guilty last May to making a false statement to a financial institution and is out on bond pending her Sept. 24 sentencing. Ross pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and, because she didn't report all that illicit income to the IRS, another count of tax evasion.

Ross' sentencing is scheduled for December 3. She faces a maximum of 25 years in prison and a $350,000 fine.

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