ELLSWORTH – A former employee of the Lamoine General Store pleaded guilty last week to stealing $10,000 in cash from the small country store.

Iva Lynne Scott of Ellsworth, 43, was sentenced to eight months in the county jail and ordered to pay full restitution to the store owners, according to Hancock County Superior Court records.

Her sentence was stayed until Feb. 1, 2005.

Kimberly Murphy, Scott’s boss at the time of the embezzlement and now owner of the Lamoine store, said Friday she was happy the case was resolved and even happier that Scott was going to jail.

“I’m glad to see there was at least eight months in jail and full restitution [ordered],” Murphy said.

Although Murphy checked Scott’s references before hiring her in the summer of 2002, she did not have a police background check done, she said.

Scott also has been convicted of embezzling from a Blue Hill store in 1993. At that time, her name was Iva Lynne Westfall, according to police.

According to court records, Scott pleaded guilty to the theft charge in 1993 and was sentenced to nine months in jail, with all but one month suspended, and ordered to pay restitution of at least $10,000.

Murphy, who also owns Trenton Marketplace, said she wants Ellsworth-area business owners to “realize we have an ongoing criminal” in the community who should not be working in retail businesses.

At the time Scott was arrested in April 2003, Murphy and Maine State Police Trooper Carlton Small determined that she had stolen an estimated $7,500. Small predicted then the loss to Murphy would likely climb to $10,000.

Murphy became suspicious of Scott after money started disappearing from the store shortly after she was hired in 2002. Murphy said some transactions were voided by Scott, in addition to her cash drawer not balancing with the register receipts.

NEWS writer Bill Trotter contributed to this report.