Ex-jewelry store owner to spend time in prison - Times Daily
FLORENCE – The former owner of a Florence jewelry store was sentenced to serve a year in prison, and pay more than $67,000 to victims after she pleaded guilty to four counts of first-degree theft of property.
“These offenses caused a great deal of harm to these defendants, and a great monetary loss to them,” Lauderdale County Circuit Judge Mike Jones told Charlotte Couch Killen prior to sentencing her. “You are ordered to repay them.”
Jones said there were 14 victims involved in the case and that Killen must pay out $67,160.
The judged sentenced Killen to 10 years on each of the four charges. Each sentenced was then split with one year to serve on each. The sentences are to run concurrently.
She was taken into custody by corrections officers Wednesday, and was taken to the Lauderdale County Detention Center to be transferred to the Department of Corrections.
Killen, 61, 1233 Ridge Drive, Killen, was indicted in January. She was accused of taking jewelry items on consignment, and never returning them or paying the original owners for them, officials said.
Police said Killen was indicted on eight counts of first-degree theft of property, four counts of second-degree theft of property, and one count of third-degree theft of property.
Reports indicate Killen was previously arrested in September 2015 after being indicted on charges of first-degree theft of property, and second-degree theft of property.
She was denied probation on those charges and sentenced to 46 months, split with four months to serve in the Lauderdale County Detention Center and 36 months in supervised probation. She was ordered to repay $39,000 to two victims.
Florence police detective Alex Guynn said following the first indictments in 2015, several other victims came forward and additional charges were filed.
Reports indicate Killen is the former owner of Morgan’s Jewelers in the old Kmart Shopping Center in Florence. Authorities said the business closed in April 2015.
According to the indictment, Killen is accused of taking items on consignment and when she closed the store, she never returned the items to the original owners, and she did not pay the owners for the items.
