Ex-detention officer accused of stealing money from Troup County inmates
Douglas Robert Meserole (Troup County Sheriff's Office)
TROUP COUNTY, Ga. - A former detention officer at the Troup County Jail is under arrest accused of stealing thousands of dollars from inmates at the prison.
Officials say Douglas Robert Meserole was arrested Tuesday and charged with two felony counts of theft by taking by a fiduciary.
According to the Troup County Sheriff's Office, Meserole left his employment with the department in November 2021. Before that, he was assigned as the store call officer in charge of inmate funds and the commissary at the jail.
As part of normal protocol when someone in Meserole's position leaves, officials initiated an audit of the inmates accounts and said they found "possible discrepancies." At the same time, two former inmates came forward and said their federal stimulus checks had been deposited by the Troup County Sheriff's Office.
Deputies found in their investigation that $2,800 had been added to the former inmates' accounts after they were released and those funds were later converted to pre-paid debit cards. Investigators say Meserole's log-in was used to deposit the money on the cards and the deposits happened on days he was working.
"Every person that works for the Troup County Sheriff’s Office are held to a high standard and I tell them personally that should they violate law, they will be arrested and charged accordingly," Sheriff James Woodruff said in a statement. "I appreciate the hard work by my investigators and the cooperation with the DA’s office."