Former treasurer of Showell Volunteer Fire Company facing felony theft charges

The former treasurer of the Showell Volunteer Fire Company was arrested Saturday and charged with felony theft for reportedly stealing from the fire company's bank accounts.

Mark Allan Widgeon of Snow Hill allegedly made several personal transactions with the fire company's money, purchases reportedly totaling thousands of dollars.

The Worcester County Bureau of Investigations opened an investigation into Widgeon back in 2013. Widgeon was the Showell Volunteer Fire Company's treasurer from 2009 until 2012. Officials say a lengthy audit of the fire company's bank accounts provided evidence for the Worcester County Bureau of Investigations and the Worcester County State's Attorney's Office to issue an arrest warrant for Widgeon.

Deputies from the Worcester County Sheriff's Office arrested Widgeon around 8 AM Saturday. His bond has been set at $50,000 unsecured.

According to a statement from the Showell Volunteer Fire Department, the fire company has cooperated with authorities and apologizes for the situation.

"The actions of one individual has caused much damage to the department, its reputation and community," the statement says. "This has been isolated and when discovered the department immediately reached out to the police and State's Attorney's office for assistance and guidance."

No fire or EMS services were affected by the theft, the department said. Officials say new accounting protocols have been implemented by the fire company to prevent something like this from happening again.