A School Worker Faces Prison For Stealing $1.5 Million Worth Of Chicken Wings

While many people have pondered the lengths they'd go for a Klondike ice cream bar, have you ever wondered what you'd be willing to do for chicken wings? 68-year-old Illinois school worker Vera Liddell was willing to go as far as steal for them, but she didn't stop with just one. Over the course of 19 months during the COVID-19 pandemic, Liddell stole over 11,000 district-provided take-home meals (the majority of them being chicken wings) meant for students taking remote classes as part of a free school meal program. 

Vera Liddell had experienced financial issues in the past, with multiple bankruptcies on her record. As the food service director for Harvey School District 152, it was a simple scheme for her to pull off. She had also earned the district's trust after working there for over 13 years. Liddell's plot involved making unauthorized orders to Gordon Food Services, the district's main food distributor, and picking them up in a district van. After the pandemic ended, however, her plot was uncovered.

During a mid-year audit, the resulting excessive food service budget was discovered by the district's business manager. This led to an investigation that uncovered approximately $1.5 million worth of food Liddell stole, along with security footage of her picking up the stolen meals. What cast further suspicion was the fact that the district didn't even serve chicken wings to students on account of the bones being a safety issue. Liddell, filled with remorse, pled guilty on August 9, 2024, leading to a nine-year prison sentence in Cook County Jail for her criminal actions.

According to her lawyers, she could not pay the restitution because of her gambling problem. While she may not be able to pay for the wings, a head-turning social media post by NFL star Chris Jones implied his intention to pay the $1.5 million total in stolen goods. The professional athlete definitely has the means, as he signed a $158 million contract extension earlier this year. While it's unlikely from a legal standpoint that his intervention would clear Liddell of her charges, it's undoubtedly a newsworthy development in an already strange case.