A former Flathead County Sheriff’s Office employee has been charged with embezzling more than $90,000 from the employees association.

Nicole Fister, 36, was charged Wednesday in Flathead District Court with felony theft. She is accused of stealing the money while she was an office employee at the Sheriff’s Office and secretary/treasurer of the Flathead County Sheriff’s Office Employee Association.

Fister, who worked for the Sheriff’s Office for nine years and whose husband, Nick, is a deputy, was fired as soon as the alleged theft was discovered, according to Sheriff Chuck Curry. She had been secretary/treasurer of the employee association for four years.

If convicted, Fister faces up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $50,000.

Curry said the thefts were discovered in mid-April and investigated by the detective division of the Sheriff’s Office and the Flathead County Attorney’s Office. Flathead County Attorney Ed Corrigan is assigned to the court case and Fister is being represented by attorney Sean Hinchey.

According to a court document, Curry learned on April 17 that Fister had issued a $1,000 check on April 1 and a $3,000 check on April 15 to herself and also issued a $2,500 check to her son on April 5.

The document alleges Fister admitted those three checks were theft and admitted illegally cashing 30 or more checks totaling more than $30,000 on the employee association’s show fund account over the last two years.

She allegedly said she used some of the money for personal expenses and gave some to her son and daughter.

Although Curry said more than $90,000 is missing, the total amount will not be known until a full audit is completed.

The only money stolen was from the employees association, a nonprofit organization that supports charitable causes with money collected from membership dues and fundraising. No public or Sheriff’s Office money was stolen.

FISTER entered a not-guilty plea during a combination initial appearance/arraignment hearing at 8:30 a.m. Wednesday morning in front of District Judge Ted Lympus.

Both Curry and Corrigan said such an occurrence — both hearings on the morning of the same day charges were filed — is not unusual.

“That was scheduled through her attorney, and it’s not unusual,” Curry said. “I wouldn’t think that was any sort of preferential treatment. It is rather common.”

Corrigan also said it was not unusual, although he didn’t know how frequently it happens.

He also commented on the warrant issued for Fister’s arrest prior to the charges being filed — a book-and-release warrant.

“I did not think it necessary to put her in jail,” Corrigan said. “She’s not a flight risk, her husband, of course, is a deputy sheriff, and we thought it the appropriate course. We think if we asked for a bond, the justice court would have likely” released her on her own recognizance.

Curry agreed.

“Those warrants — in property crimes and nonviolent crimes — are pretty common,” Curry said. “There’s a lot of them, actually. But it almost never happens with violent crimes.”

Fister’s next hearing is set for July 17.

JARED LAKO, an evidence technician at the sheriff’s office and president of the non-sworn arm of the employees association — from which the thefts were made — said he and other members were shocked when they found out what had happened.

“There’s a lot of disbelief that it happened, and it’s kind of the seven stages of grief. You get upset, you get sad, you eventually get over it,” Lako said. “Everybody’s reacting differently.”

He also said they hold no ill will toward Fister.

“She was still one of our members and a great asset to work with,” Lako said. “It’s not like we’re banishing her from being our friend, which is hard. We’re still supportive of her personal life, it’s just people make mistakes, and unfortunately it was one of our own people.”

Lako said the organization still has money left in the bank, although he declined to say how much, and said the association still was dedicated to providing regular donations to the community.

“This is hurting us, but we’re not going to let it hurt our giving as well,” he said. “We’re going to step up and make our donations that we have in the past. A lot of the children’s organizations depend on it, so we feel it is still important to us.”

Anyone interested in donating to the employee association to help defray its losses can contact Lako at the Sheriff’s Office at 758-5692.

Fister’s phone number is unlisted and Hinchey could not be contacted Wednesday.

Reporter Jesse Davis may be reached at 758-4441 or by email at jdavis@dailyinterlake.com.