Jury convicts ex-cop’s wife in theft from Santa Rosa Junior College parking meters

The wife of a Santa Rosa Junior College police officer who embezzled $286,000 from campus parking machines was found guilty Wednesday of being an accessory to his crime.

Karen Holzworth, 50, wiped her eyes as the jury delivered the verdict after the weeklong trial.

She faces up to 3½ years in jail when she is sentenced March 26, although prosecutors said she is more likely to get probation because of her lack of a record.

“We felt the evidence was overwhelming,” a juror who declined to give his name said before leaving the courthouse.

The verdict comes about 10 months after Jeffrey Holzworth, a 28-year law enforcement veteran, was sentenced to four years in prison for stealing the money from automated machines.

Holzworth, who oversaw the school’s parking collection system, came under suspicion after a fellow officer spotted him emptying machines during off-duty hours and saw large amounts of bills and coins in his car.

An investigation, in which detectives tracked him with a GPS device and pored through his bank records, revealed he had stolen hundreds of thousands of dollars between 2005 and 2012.

A search of the Santa Rosa house he shared with his wife and teenage daughter turned up bags of money hidden in the attic, under the bed and in the garage.

Police believe he spent the money on a lifestyle he couldn’t afford, which included gambling trips and visits to prostitutes.

Prosecutors said his wife helped him launder stacks of ones and fives by depositing the money in bank accounts and withdrawing larger denominations.

Karen Holz-worth appeared to admit her involvement in recorded phone calls she made to her husband while he was in jail.

She took the stand at her trial and denied she was aware of what her husband was doing. She testified the source of cash deposits over the years were loans paid back by her brothers, gambling winnings from River Rock Casino and tips from her work as an Ursuline High School bingo caller.

But prosecutor Amy Ariyoshi argued that was impossible.

Jurors said they tried to give her the benefit of doubt but found her explanation was not convincing. Under cross-examination, she wasn’t able to reconcile her account activity with her sources of income, juror Mark Quattrochi of Santa Rosa said.

“She finally got to a point where she couldn’t answer the questions,” he said. “She just couldn’t respond.”

Jurors deliberated about a day before finding Holzworth guilty of felony accessory and two misdemeanor counts of receiving stolen property.

She remained free on bail pending her sentencing.

You can reach Staff Writer Paul Payne at 568-5312 or paul.payne@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter ?@ppayne.