The former food service director of an Illinois school district has been sentenced to nine years in prison for using district money over 19 months to buy herself $1.5 million in chicken wings.

Vera Liddell, 66, who worked at Harvey School District 152, was charged with operation of a criminal enterprise and theft, according to Chicago ABC affiliate WLS-TV. She pleaded guilty Friday, the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office told Chicago TV station WGN-TV.

From July 2020 through February 2022, Liddell ordered the food using one of the district’s food providers and used a district van to pick it up, coinciding with the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The massive fraud began at the height of COVID during a time when students were not allowed to be physically present in school. Even though the children were learning remotely, the school district continued to provide meals for the students that their families could pick up,” prosecutors said in court documents according to WGN-TV.

Liddell ordered more than 11,000 cases of chicken wings for herself, billing the district for the cost. A 2023 audit found that Liddell’s department had exceeded its budget by $300,000 only halfway through the school year, which led to the finding of the invoices for the chicken wings.

In court documents, officials noted that the invoices stood out because chicken wings are not normally sold to schools for student consumption because they contain bones, according to WLS-TV.

For more information, visit The Washington Times COVID-19 resource page.

• Brad Matthews can be reached at bmatthews@washingtontimes.com.