WOLFE COUNTY, Ky. (LEX NEWS) — A former Wolfe County Animal Shelter board member and treasurer accused of taking more than $112,000 from the shelter was arraigned virtually on a felony theft charge.
A Wolfe County grand jury indicted Pam Pilgrim on one count of theft by unlawful taking of more than $10,000. According to the indictment, Pilgrim is accused of taking more than $112,000 in shelter funds between January 2019 and July 2024.
Watch: Former Wolfe County Animal Shelter Treasurer accused of stealing $112K
Her attorney, Terry Jacobs, waived formal arraignment, and special judge Honorable Eddy Coleman set a 10% surety bond.
Special prosecutor Mark Mantooth also asked the judge to order Pilgrim to step down from positions she holds on other community boards, including positions where she serves as treasurer.
"I think that under the circumstances, probable cause has been found," Mantooth told the court, adding that he believed Pilgrim posed a risk "especially to ... those boards in which she served as treasurer."
Pilgrim's attorney objected to the request, but the judge granted it.
I also obtained a copy of a 2024 state audit of the Wolfe County Animal Shelter. According to a source with direct knowledge of the case, the audit identified several alleged financial irregularities.
Those findings included:
- 86 credit card transactions totaling more than $15,000.
- 33 checks written to "cash" totaling more than $4,700.
- Seven transactions totaling more than $7,800 in payments to vendors with ties to members of the board of directors and officers.
- Two utility payments totaling $399, despite the Wolfe County Fiscal Court paying the shelter's utilities.
LEX News reached out to Pilgrim for comment but did not receive a response.
Pilgrim is scheduled to return to court Feb. 18.
