Lehi City News
Allred booked on city embezzlement charges, case moves closer to outcome
Former Lehi Streets Superintendent Wade Allred and his cousin, Adam Lake, both appeared in court (online) on Wednesday, October 21. Lehi defense attorney, Brett Anderson, represented Allred. Provo defense attorney, Michael Petro, represented Lake. The two men are accused of embezzling nearly $800,000 from Lehi City between 2014 and 2019. Allred was terminated from employment at Lehi City in September of 2019.
According to court documents presented in Provo’s Fourth District Court, the two have been charged with 14 second degree felonies and one third-degree felony, including money laundering, communications fraud, theft, and tampering with a witness.
Allred, not Lake, was charged with the additional felony for “tampering with a witness.” After Allred was aware of the City’s investigation, he contacted a Lehi City employee and “tried to get the other employee to say that the other employee had been verifying loads. The other employee had never verified any loads,” according to court documents.
Judge Lynn Davis ordered both defendants to report to the Utah County Jail for logistical processing at a previous September court appearance. Complying with the order, Allred was booked into the Utah County jail on Sunday, October 18, for fingerprinting and processing before being immediately released.
The next court appearance scheduled for Allred and Lake is November 4, 2020. Attorneys for both men stated the cases were moving closer to an outcome, and negotiations are ongoing with the Utah County prosecutor’s office. If a deal is reached before the next court appearance, both defendants could potentially make a plea at the November 4 hearing and bring the case to a conclusion.
The Lehi Free Press will continue to update the case as more information becomes available.
