PROVO — A former Mapleton employee charged with taking thousands of dollars from city coffers appeared in court for the first time Thursday.

Jeannie Bell, 48, received a document explaining her second-degree felony charge of theft, then signed a promise to appear again Sept. 3.

She left 4th District Court quickly, covering her face with her papers and avoiding reporters. Her attorney, Douglas Baxter, said he had just received the case and had no comment.

Prosecutors allege that Bell, as the city's financial controller, purchased stamps and gift cards for employee bonuses or gifts, but instead of distributing them sold them on eBay and kept the revenue.

That pattern began in January 2007 and continued until May 2009, said prosecutor Craig Johnson.

Most gift cards were in the $20 to $50 range, and the total amount taken was more than $5,000, he said.

When the city noticed discrepancies, it took "immediate action," which included notifying authorities, then confronting Bell, who resigned in June. The city also hired an independent forensic auditor to comb through city records looking for any other problems, said Mapleton Mayor Laurel Brady.

Bell had been working for the city since 2001 and had been in the position of financial controller, the equivalent of a finance director, since 2002.

— Sara Israelsen-Hartley