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MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Md. - Officials say the Director of the Montgomery County Public Schools Department of Transportation, Todd Michael Watkins pled guilty to one count of misdemeanor, Friday afternoon in Montgomery County Circuit Court before the Honorable Michael McAuliffe.
According to court documents, the defendant, Watkins, failed to properly manage the contract for the purchases of school buses and the use of purchasing cards in his department over a period of time ranging from 2016 and continuing into September 2021. Charles Ewald, the Assistant Director of the Department of Transportation, was able to steal over $320,000 during this time frame.
This comes after a guilty plea entered by defendant, Ewald in Circuit Court, before Judge McAuliffe, on May 18th, 2023. Ewald pled guilty to felony theft scheme having a value of over $100,000 and misdemeanor misconduct in office. Ewald is scheduled for a sentencing hearing on September 6th, 2023, at 8:30 a.m. and faces up to 20 years in prison on the theft scheme charge.
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