Date: July 10, 2025
Contact: newsroom@ci.irs.gov
Newnan, GA — Wesleigh Gaddy, of Hogansville, Ga., appeared in federal court today on a charge of theft from a program receiving federal funds.
“Gaddy allegedly stole more than half a million taxpayer dollars by exploiting the personal information of dozens of former Troup County employees,” said U.S. Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg. “Such corruption is outrageous, and our office is committed to prosecuting anyone who manipulates a position of public service for unlawful private benefit.”
“As a public servant, Gaddy used her entrusted position to steal the identities of county employees to access taxpayers’ money for her benefit,” said Special Agent in Charge Demetrius Hardeman, IRS Criminal Investigation, Atlanta Field Office. “IRS Criminal Investigation special agents will continue investigating public officials and servants who steal from the taxpayers they are supposed to serve.”
“Misappropriating public funds is a betrayal of the public trust and authorities granted with a role of public service," said FBI Atlanta Special Agent in Charge Paul Brown. “The FBI is committed to holding those accountable who abuse this trust and their position for their own gain.”
According to U.S. Attorney Hertzberg, the charges, and other information presented in court: In April 2025, a Troup County Sheriff’s Office deputy reported a discrepancy with his paycheck to the Troup County Board of Commissioners, which manages Troup County’s finances and is a recipient of federal funding. Specifically, the deputy noted that an employee portal showed several direct deposit payments were made to him when he did not work for the county and never received those payments.
A review of the county’s payroll data showed that, between March 2023 and May 2025, while Wesleigh Gaddy was Troup County’s payroll specialist, hundreds of payments, totaling more than $500,000, were withdrawn from county funds for the purported benefit of more than 75 former Troup County employees. But those funds were directed to only three banking accounts, and none of the employees worked for the county at the time of the payments. The complaint filed on July 3, 2025, alleges that Gaddy controlled at least one of the recipient accounts and that, when interviewed by law enforcement, Gaddy admitted to stealing funds from Troup County’s payroll and sending the money to her own accounts.
Members of the public are reminded that the complaint only contains charges. The defendant is presumed innocent of the charges, and it will be the government’s burden to prove the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.
This case is being investigated by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Georgia Bureau of Investigation. The Coweta Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office referred the case to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for federal investigation.
Assistant United States Attorneys Bethany L. Rupert and Garrett Bradford are prosecuting the case.
IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) is the law enforcement arm of the IRS, responsible for conducting financial crime investigations, including tax fraud, narcotics trafficking, money laundering, public corruption, healthcare fraud, identity theft and more. IRS-CI special agents are the only federal law enforcement agents with investigative jurisdiction over violations of the Internal Revenue Code, obtaining a 90% federal conviction rate. The agency has 19 field offices located across the U.S. and 14 attaché posts abroad.