LAKE WALES, Fla. — A former Lake Wales Polce Department (LWPD) employee was arrested on Sept. 5 after she used a nonprofit credit card for personal use, authorities said.
Leslie Grondin, 46, of Lake Wales, was arrested and charged with fraudulent use of a credit card (felony) and petit theft (misdemeanor) following an investigation into unauthorized use of nonprofit funds.
On Sept. 4, Grondin resigned from the Lake Wales Police Department where she worked as a staff assistant since April 1, 2024.
The investigation began on Sept. 3, when a representative from the Lake Wales High School Band Association contacted police and reported suspected fraudulent activity on their bank account. Detectives identified the suspect as Grondin, who was serving as treasurer of the nonprofit organization.
Detectives uncovered the following unauthorized transactions made with on the organization’s account:
* April 1, 2025 – $90 charge to the National Society of High School Scholars.
* April 14, 2025 – $227.63 charge for a hotel stay at the Residence Inn in Gainesville.
* April 29, 2025 – $174.82 payment for Grondin’s personal residential water bill.
During questioning on Sept. 3, Grondin said she used the organization’s debit card to pay her water bill because she was “tight on money,” according to a LWPD report.
She also admitted to the hotel stay, claiming she may have used the wrong card, police officials said. However, in her Treasurer’s Report, she listed the hotel stay and water bill charges as fraudulent, informing the board she would follow up with the bank, but never did, the report stated.
With the National Society of High School Scholars payment, Grondin first denied the charge, but later provided a receipt for that purchase, the report stated.
At the time of the transactions, Grondin had sole custody of the Band Association’s debit card and was responsible for preparing and submitting financial reports. On May 8, 2025, she submitted the April Treasurer’s Report, where she lied about the two of the unauthorized charges the report stated.
Grodin’s annual police department salary was $46,363.20. She did not handle money or conduct financial transactions for the department, police officials said. Grondin did not have any disciplinary records during her employment with the department.
This investigation remains active as detectives continue to review past transactions.
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