The ex-chief of operations and executive director of Gilbertsville Area Community Ambulance Service will be under court supervision for two years and is prohibited from being involved with the organization after confessing to unauthorized personal purchases totaling over $3,000 using the organization’s credit cards.
69-year-old Garry Roy Schmoltze Sr., residing in the 3200 block of Walnut Ridge Estate, Lower Pottsgrove, was given a two-year probation sentence in Montgomery County Court after acknowledging a misdemeanor charge of access device fraud related to thefts amounting to $3,254.95 between April 2021 and July 2022.
Judge Thomas M. DelRicci, who approved a plea agreement, also mandated that Schmoltze stay away from the ambulance service as part of his sentence.
The prosecution backed the plea agreement only after Schmoltze fully compensated for the amount taken before the sentencing hearing.
Assistant District Attorney Gwendolyn Kull explained Schmoltze’s admission, stating that he obtained access to the ambulance company’s accounts and misused the credit cards for personal purchases instead of intended company expenses.
According to court documents, Schmoltze made improper credit card purchases for personal items such as medication and home heating oil.
Kull criticized Schmoltze for exploiting the ambulance company’s funds meant for the community and emphasized that all the money taken through the access device fraud was for his personal gain.
As part of the plea agreement, additional charges against Schmoltze, including theft and deceptive practices, were dropped.
Schmoltze was represented by defense lawyer Christopher Daniels during the legal proceedings.
Daniels conveyed Schmoltze’s remorse, stating that he is relieved that the matter has been resolved and has repaid all the restitution. He attributed the incident to an oversight and a regrettable situation.
Referring to Schmoltze’s prior service in law enforcement and for the county coroner, Daniels mentioned that he had over 30 years of public service.
Schmoltze was employed by the ambulance service from 2009 to 2022.
At the time of his arrest, authorities estimated the theft from the ambulance service at nearly $9,000.
Daniels clarified that upon reviewing the credit card statements, it became clear that many of the initial charges were legitimate expenses for the benefit and supplies of Gilbertsville Ambulance, leading to the commonwealth amending and removing them from the case.
An inquiry started in July 2022, when Douglass (Mont.) Township supervisors informed township detectives about possible fraud done by Schmoltze at the ambulance service located at 91 Jackson Road in the Gilbertsville section of the township.
The organization’s workers expressed worry about the credit card transactions and recent changes at the facility. This includes Schmoltze modifying access on a key fob system that prevented employees from getting into the office area, as stated in the criminal complaint filed by Douglass (Mont.) Township Detective Robert Evans and Montgomery County Detective Dirk Boughter.
When detectives went to the organization’s headquarters on July 16, 2022, officials there reported discovering questionable purchases made by Schmoltze with the organization’s credit card, according to court papers.
When confronted by organization officials, Schmoltze confessed to the unauthorized personal charges and agreed to repay the debt in full, as indicated in the court papers. However, the charges were not repaid at that time, according to court documents.
Subsequently, Schmoltze was removed as chief of operations by the organization’s board during an emergency meeting.
In court papers, detectives said the subsequent investigation found that Schmoltze used his position as chief of operations and executive director for personal gain and committed theft and fraud-related offenses in that role.
Among the unauthorized purchases made by Schmoltze using the organization’s business credit card were: medication through Express Scripts; home heating oil; testosterone supplements; gun cases; military backpacks; and Roku streaming devices, according to the criminal complaint.
“Garry Schmoltze Sr. has made no effort to pay GACAS for these unauthorized purchases, despite knowing the financial distress that GACAS has been under since at least 2019,” Evans and Boughter wrote in the arrest affidavit.
Legal documents indicated that 27 of the unauthorized transactions, totaling $948, were for purchases through Express Scripts.
A Google search of three transactions, totaling $206.75, made between October and December 2021, “indicated that the product purchased was likely a testosterone treatment (pill form),” detectives wrote in the arrest affidavit.
“There is no legitimate reason for an ambulance service to carry that medication for Basic or Advance Life Support purposes,” Evans and Boughter wrote in court papers.
A Feb. 7, 2022, purchase from a Pottstown home heating oil company totaled $532.50 but officials said the Jackson Road ambulance service headquarters does not use heating oil for any purpose. Schmoltze allegedly admitted to making the purchase for his home and claimed he would pay it back, however, there was no record of Schmoltze ever repaying the amount.
Additionally, detectives alleged that Schmoltze used his position to apply for an American Express credit card in his name, but with the tax-exempt status of GACAS as a non-profit entity. The card was never authorized by the GACAS board or associated with the organization, detectives alleged.
