Board calls on metro-east official to resign after she used township debit card at casino
Some members of the Canteen Township Board are calling on the township supervisor to resign after she used a government-issued debit card and wrote checks off its bank account to withdraw money at a casino.
Sally Rodriguez was appointed township supervisor by other members of the board in May of 2023, after elected supervisor Norm Miller died. According to minutes from the board’s Sept. 4 meeting, she admitted using the card for her personal use, but only by mistake.
“I asked her how do you make the same mistake five times and how does your personal card have the same pin number as the Township’s?” said board member Rickie Thomas.
Rodriguez did not respond to the BND’s request for comments.
Thomas said he learned about Rodriguez’s use of the township’s debit card and checking account from a package sent anonymously through the mail. It contained copies of receipts showing the cash advances from an ATM at Horseshoe Casino in St. Louis and bank statements from Busey Bank, where the township keeps its accounts.
A letter inside came “from someone who resigned that informed us about some misappropriation of the township’s funds,” Thomas said in an interview.
Township trustees Angie “Anne” Rodgers, Cynthia Gutierrez and Nick Allen, and Township Clerk Kawaii Williams also received the parcels. The Belleville News-Democrat has obtained copies of the documents.
“I received an anonymous package in the mail along with other trustees …” Thomas said. “It included bank statements and some receipts showing where the supervisor used the debit card at a casino to withdraw funds and checks she wrote to Busey Bank, where the township’s account is, to obtain cash for herself.”
Bank statements showed six transactions made at Horseshoe Casino from the township’s account, including three $2,000 withdrawals. Two checks were written to Sally Rodriguez and a third to cash, the statements also showed.
Williams, the township clerk, said Rodriguez also made two withdrawals of $500 each from the township’s account at an ATM in Fairmont City.
Rodriguez did not leave a signature on the casino transactions, but admitted using the township’s debit card, according to minutes of the Sept. 4 meeting of township trustees. She also paid back all the funds, Thomas and Williams confirmed.
Still, Thomas called on Rodriguez to resign immediately from the board, a motion that was seconded by Rodgers.
“I like Sally, but I can’t condone her use of taxpayer funds in the manner that she did,” Thomas said. “She is the only one who has control over the Township’s credit cards, debit cards and checks. She is the only one who controls the Township’s finances.”
Township Trustee Cynthia Gutierrez voted against the call for Rodriguez to resign and Trustee Nick Allen abstained, neither explaining their vote when contacted by the BND.
“She told us it was a mistake, but a mistake does not happen multiple times,” said Rodgers. “A mistake is when you realize a mistake was made that day and then you run and try to put things back. In this case it happened on numerous occasions. She is one of the check signers and she signed off on a couple of the checks at Busey where she withdrew money from the township account. How is this a mistake? . …
“The funds are supposed to be used for the community at large in Canteen Township’s jurisdiction, not for personal use.”
Rodgers said she’s disappointed because she backed Rodriguez as a candidate to replace Miller as township supervisor. Her refusal to resign “says to me it’s OK for her to do what she did,” Rodgers said.
The seat for Canteen township supervisor will be back on the municipal ballot in April of next year.
Williams doesn’t have a vote on the board, but said she also believes Rodriguez should step down.
“Something should happen,” she said. “Washington Park is basically an impoverished village. Fairmont City, State Park and Caseyville are all helped by the Canteen Township. So, her doing what she did, I feel it is not right.”
John Baricevic, attorney for the Canteen Township, said Illinois law does not allow for the forcible removal of an elected official, even if the person holding the office was appointed. Baricevic declined to comment on Rodriguez’s use of the township bank account.
Canteen Township is in northwest St. Clair County, including parts of Caseyville, Fairmont City, Fairview Heights, Madison and Washington Park.
As Canteen Township supervisor, Rodriguez also holds seats on the East Side Health District Board and St. Clair County Transit board.
This story was originally published November 18, 2024 at 6:00 AM.
