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Former state court probation officer Freeman Sasao pleaded not guilty Thursday to charges that he pocketed payments from probationers and forged receipts for the payments to cover the theft.
Freeman, 56, is scheduled to stand trial in state court in July on one count of theft and 11 counts of forgery.
Each charge is a class C felony punishable by up to five years in prison and $10,000 fine.
According to a criminal complaint the state Attorney General filed in state court last Friday, Freeman stole $2,665 that probationers had paid in fees, fines or court costs. The complaint alleges that he forged the receipts for $1,515 on July 1, 2011, forged the receipt for $1,000 on Apr. 24, 2012 forged the receipt for $150 on July 9, 2013.
Each of the receipts in 2012 and 2013 were single payments, according to the complaint. The 2011 receipts were for three payments each of $105, $150 and $250.
The state Judiciary fired Sasao on June 13, 2014.
