A Marshalltown woman who pleaded guilty to stealing thousands of dollars from a veterinary clinic received a five-year suspended prison sentence Monday.

Abby Kjormoe, 32, will not go to jail but will keep the felony charge on her record, after the decision from District Judge James Ellefson in Marshall County court.

She pleaded guilty to second-degree theft for stealing from her former employer Animal Clinic – The Vet.

The amount she stole is still under dispute as each side in the case gave different figures but it could be between $10,000 and $38,000. Kjormoe was ordered to serve two to five years probation and to pay restitution, which will be determined at a later date.

“I find the breach of trust that occurred here to be breathtaking,” Ellefson said of the case prior to handing down the sentence.

Kjormore said at a previous court hearing that she would accept cash transactions at the clinic while working there then delete those transactions and keep the cash.

Marshall County Assistant Attorney Paul Crawford said Kjormore had the opportunity to think each time she stole, but continued to do so over the course of several years and more than 100 times.

Dr. Dennis Drager, owner of the clinic, said his clinic found $38,000 missing and he feels Abby stole from the business more than 1,000 times.

“We just feel so betrayed,” Drager said in his victim impact statement. “We thought that we treated Abby extremely fairly.”

Kjormoe’s attorney, Kevin O’Hare, asked for a deferred judgement in the case which would take the charge off her criminal record.

“She’s a young woman and she has no prior criminal history,” O’Hare said.

O’Hare said Kjormore had issues with alcohol which she has since been through a rehabilitation program and had a significant other with health issues, though he didn’t claim these as excuses.

“It certainly was inappropriate behavior on her part,” O’Hare said.

Prior to the sentencing, Kjormoe gave a statement in which she apologized to the Dragers and to the court.

“What I did was very, very wrong,” Kjormoe said.

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Contact Andrew Potter at 641-753-6611 or apotter@timesrepublican.com