Greensburg fire chief resigns days after wife charged

GREENSBURG, Ind. (AP) - Greensburg's longtime fire chief resigned and retired just days after criminal charges were filed against his wife, the former police chief.

Scott Chasteen, a 24-year fire department veteran, notified Mayor Gary Herbert on Friday that he was resigning the position he had held for more than a decade, the Greensburg Daily News reported (http://bit.ly/1vq7UFI ). The resignation took effect immediately.

"Scott Chasteen has always been an asset to the City of Greensburg as fire chief, and under his watch the department has flourished," the mayor said in a written statement. "I regret that his resignation and retirement arise under the cloud that they do, but I believe that his decision is the correct one and with a heavy heart, I accept it."

Stacey L. Chasteen surrendered Tuesday at the Decatur County Jail in the community about 50 miles southeast of Indianapolis to faces one charge each of theft and official misconduct after an audit found nearly $73,000 in cash missing from a police department property room. She has been released on bond.

Court documents allege that Stacey Chasteen stole the money to feed a gambling habit. Stacey Chasteen confided in her husband in June 2013 that she had stolen and gambled away the money and wished to return them, investigators have said.

Scott Chasteen said the couple borrowed $57,000 from friends and relatives and used personal funds to come up with $70,000 for his wife to replace the missing money. An affidavit said Scott Chasteen told Indiana State Police detectives he believed his wife had used that money to replace the stolen evidence funds. Instead, the former police chief gambled and lost all of that money also, investigators have said.

Scott Chasteen also told Investigators his wife had a serious gambling problem that had caused them to file for bankruptcy in 2010.

Scott Chasteen has not been charged with any crime.

Herbert said city officials first learned that Scott Chasteen had knowledge of his wife's alleged actions this week when court documents pertaining to the criminal case were released to the public.

Citing personal reasons, Stacy Chasteen resigned late last year after three years as chief and 21 years on the force. She is scheduled to make her initial court appearance on March 4 in Decatur Circuit Court.

Decatur County Prosecutor Nathan Harter has said previously that the missing money could impact 16 cases.

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Information from: Greensburg Daily News, http://www.greensburgdailynews.com