COTTONWOOD WOMAN GETS 10-YEAR PRISON TERM IN VERDE VALLEY FRAUD CASE

Published on March 14, 2024

A Cottonwood resident was sentenced to 10 years in prison after her guilty plea to nine charges connected to a large fraud case investigated by the Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office (YCSO).

Under a plea deal, 42-year-old Elaine Vowell admitted to nine felonies including fraud, theft, forgery and I.D. theft, all with a prior felony conviction on her record. Yavapai County Superior Court Judge John Erickson handed down concurrent prison terms ranging from 2.5 to 10 years, with credit for about six months already served in jail.

According to the YCSO investigation, Vowell worked for Noah’s Ark Roofing in Cottonwood when she used a company credit card for several unauthorized charges and also rerouted several checks from roofing customers to her own personal account. Investigators said she took more than $30,000 from the firm over several months beginning in September 2021.