MADISON COUNTY, Iowa — In the aftermath of the Madison County Treasurer’s arrest for alleged “felonious misconduct in office” and other crimes, questions are mounting as to how properly the office was being run.

Days after the City of Winterset confirmed to WHO 13 that it had collectively received more than a quarter of a million dollars in erroneous deposits, the Superintendent of the Winterset Community School District said late property tax payments forced them to withdraw funds from investment opportunities to cover payroll on several occasions.

Amanda DeVos, 37, has not been criminally charged in connection to either incident.

DeVos was elected Madison County Treasurer in 20-22. She was arrested on Friday and charged with one felony and three misdemeanors. A criminal complaint alleges she used her access as county treasurer to alter government records so it looked like she had paid $758 for her vehicle registration plates when she had not.

Madison County Sheriff Jason Barnes declined to comment on the case on Monday, but stated the “investigation is in the very early stages with additional charges pending.” He said he would release more information as the agency moves forward.

Some residents have described the county treasurer’s office as a “ticking time bomb.”

“I was shocked. I mean, I knew there was something going on here. Everyone knew there was something going on,” said Harry Pettit. “I am shocked that somebody finally got in there and straightened things out.”

Pettit is a lifelong Madison County resident and a locally known whistleblower. He provided a copy of an 18-page, handwritten report full of complaints that he said he had recently sent to state officials.

“This never should have happened and never should have got this far,” he told WHO-13’s Katie Kaplan. 

Pettit said he wants answers as to what has been going on with taxpayer money. He has reason to be concerned.

The day after DeVos’ arrest, the City of Winterset confirmed to WHO 13 that more than a quarter of a million dollars had ended up in the city’s bank account after a series of erroneous deposits from the county treasurer’s office. Despite repeated attempts over months, the issue had not been rectified at the time of DeVos’ arrest. 

The financial irregularities within the Madison County Treasurer’s Office allegedly extended to the school district. Superintendent Justin Gross told WHO 13 that the district received late payments in July, October and November of 2024, which forced the district to take money out of investment accounts to be able to pay the teachers and staff.

“Since the start of the fiscal year, our monthly property tax payments, which are to be received on or before the 15th of each month, were received late in July, October, and November,” he wrote in an email to WHO 13. “The issue with the late payment is it impacts our ability to make payroll for our staff which is also paid out to all salaried staff on the 15th of each month.”

“When the payment is late it forces the district to take money out of other accounts such as our investments to be able to cover our monthly payroll that is approximately $1.2 million monthly,” Gross added.

Additionally, in September the district received its “Agriculture Land Credit” payment twice when it should only have received one he said.

Gross said the district reached out to the treasurer’s office via email to ask why their deposit payments were late, but they never received any answers.

Meanwhile, Pettit and others we spoke with said they want more accountability in the county.

“Somebody needs more blame than just the treasurer,” he said.

WHO 13 reached out to all three members of the Madison County Board of Supervisors for comment, but they all either declined to comment or did not respond.