Former La Joya high school principal charged with theft

LA JOYA — Former Juarez-Lincoln High School principal Jimmy Gonzalez has been arrested on felony theft charges in connection with a school district police investigation.

La Joya school district police arrested Gonzalez last week after investigators found he allegedly asked employees to file fraudulent time sheets and asked them to give him the money, Police Chief Raul Gonzalez said. The former principal also allegedly sold a computer owned by the district to a former school employee.

“We are looking at various incidents involving time sheets,” the chief said. “What was paid for with that money, we don’t know, but there were several time sheets submitted.”

Investigators continue to probe Jimmy Gonzalez’s alleged misdeeds as principal, as more payroll funds and school property remain unaccounted for, the chief said.

“Anything and everything that people are telling us, we’re not taking it lightly,” Chief Gonzalez said. “We’re looking at everything.”

The investigation into Jimmy Gonzalez began after police received complaints regarding more than $800 that went missing after a high school jamaica, or fundraising carnival, to benefit student organizations after the school met its adequate yearly progress provisions under the No Child Left Behind Act, the chief said.

“It’s an incentive for their hard work,” he said of the students.

Jimmy Gonzalez initially was not suspected in the missing fundraiser money, Chief Gonzalez said, but further interviews with school employees revealed that the former principal had asked employees to submit false time sheets for work they did not complete.

Jimmy Gonzalez’s theft charge does not include the missing fundraiser money, which police continue to investigate.

The school leader abruptly resigned from his position with the school district on Oct. 16, after police informed the school of their ongoing investigation into the alleged theft, the chief said. The district hired the former principal in 2007.

When contacted on his cell phone, Jimmy Gonzalez said he had no comment and then hung up the phone. He hung up again when asked by phone whether he had retained an attorney.

Gonzalez turned himself in to La Joya school district police Nov. 13 and was charged with theft by a public servant — a third-degree felony that carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000. The charge could have been tougher if the alleged thefts — totaling $1,500 to $20,000 — had topped $20,000.

He was booked and released the same day at the Hidalgo County Jail on a $15,000 personal recognizance bond.

The case has been turned over to the Hidalgo County District Attorney’s Office, which will examine the allegations.