Poplar Bluff man to pay restitution to theater group

POPLAR BLUFF, Mo. -- A Poplar Bluff man was ordered to pay $4,000 in restitution to The Stage Company after earlier pleading guilty to stealing funds from the not-for-profit group that produces shows at the Rodgers Theatre.

There was a discrepancy in the amount of money Ronald Gilliland, 63, allegedly took, but before a restitution hearing Tuesday afternoon, Gilliland and his attorney, Carl Miller, met with Stage Company representatives and reached a settlement of $4,000 paid at $150 a month.

According to Butler County Prosecuting Attorney Kevin Barbour, Gilliland has already started paying.

Gilliland pleaded guilty to felony stealing Feb. 29 and has been placed on five years' supervised probation.

The charge stemmed from an investigation by the Poplar Bluff Police Department, which began Feb. 14, 2011, when David Carroll, president of the group's board of directors, reported about $15,500 in unauthorized transactions had been made on The Stage Company's bank account.

Gilliland, who had been appointed treasurer in August 2009, reportedly admitted to taking the money from The Stage Company's funds for personal use.

Pertinent address:

Poplar Bluff, Mo.