Katie Barr shown the door at Fremont clerk’s office after arrest on embezzlement charges
The Fremont County Clerk and Recorder won’t be participating in any elections anytime soon. The Cañon City Daily Record reports Katie Barr was arrested for embezzlement this week.
Barr, who is also registered as a candidate for her elected seat, was arrested on three felony charges and one misdemeanor charge with no bond, the paper reported.
“Cañon City Police Chief Daric Harvey said in a news release Tuesday night that she was arrested on charges of embezzlement of public property, intimidation of a witness, fraud by check and harassment,” according to the news story.
There’s no indication of how much Barr allegedly embezzled from the county, however.
The Daily Record’s Sara Knuth reports local police officials asked the FBI for assistance on an investigation for “irregular financial activity” early on:
“In a November news release, CCPD officials said nine search warrants, going back through more than seven years of financial records, had been executed in the investigation at that point.”
Chief Deputy Clerk Dotty Gardunio is reportedly taking over the office, and this isn’t her first time. She took over the office during the investigation, which stretched on for more than a month.
Following media coverage of the investigation last year, Fremont County commissioners released a statement to Colorado Springs news station KOAA that the county would take further actions to ensure no more similar cases could occur:
“The County Commissioners took immediate steps to place additional financial safeguards in place. In addition, a review of every department and every elected official’s office will be conducted in the near future concerning cash handling and banking activities.”
In October, county officials said they’d also perform financial reviews on each department.


