Treasurer accused of stealing thousands from VFW and DAV

CHEYENNE (WNE) — A Cheyenne woman accused of stealing roughly $30,000 from Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1881 Auxiliary was arrested on a second felony theft charge following a court appearance Thursday.

Cheryl K. Shannon was scheduled to have a preliminary hearing Thursday in Laramie County Circuit Court on charges of felony theft and forgery.

According to the affidavit regarding her original charge, she stole $30,000 from the Post’s Auxiliary by making unauthorized bank withdrawals using a bank card issued to her as treasurer for the organization.

Shannon was unprepared for her hearing, appearing in front of Judge Antoinette Williams without a lawyer. Shannon claimed that the Cheyenne Police Department still had her purse, wallet, phone, credit cards and checkbook in evidence from her Dec. 6 arrest.

While Shannon repeatedly insisted that this had inhibited her from hiring a lawyer, interrupting the court to reiterate her point, Judge Williams told her that her reasoning wasn’t good enough for the court.

Williams rescheduled Shannon’s hearing for Dec. 30 at 11 a.m., giving her 10 days to hire legal representation, and court went into recess.

Before Shannon could leave the courtroom, however, she was arrested on a second felony theft charge regarding similar actions at the Disabled American Veterans.

The DAV contacted CPD on Dec. 9, stating that Shannon, as treasurer, allegedly stole $38,560 from the group, which she admitted to Detective Hedum, according to her booking sheet.

Shannon had been stealing money from the DAV for approximately the last two years by withdrawing money from their account using a DAV debit card, according to the booking sheet.

Bond for her initial arrest was set at $5,000 cash or surety, which has been posted. The bond status of her second arrest has yet to be filed with the court.

This story was published on December 21, 2024.