PRESS ADVISORY

Monday, June 22, 2009

Former Georgia Public Broadcasting Employee Indicted For Multiple Felony Thefts

Attorney General Thurbert Baker announced that his office had sought and obtained an indictment against Belinda Davis, a/k/a Belinda Botley Usher, for forty-six felony counts of theft by taking in relation to a scheme that Davis had allegedly set up while an employee at Georgia Public Broadcasting.  Davis, as part of the alleged scheme, had moneys drawn from GPB accounts and placed into her personal bank accounts.   The alleged thefts ranged from $250.00 to $860.00, and totaled over $21,000 in the aggregate.  If Davis is convicted, each count carries a possible sentence of one to fifteen years in prison.

At the time of the alleged thefts, Davis was employed in the finance department at Georgia Public Broadcasting.  She was let go in February 2008 after her role in the alleged thefts was uncovered.

Members of the public should keep in mind that indictments contain only allegations against the individual(s) against whom the indictment is sought.  A defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty, and it will be the government’s burden at trial to prove the defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt of the allegations contained in the indictment.