Former Vanderburgh County deputy coroner pleads guilty to stealing from deceased person's home

Ray Couture
Evansville Courier & Press

A former deputy Vanderburgh County Coroner and Evansville fireman pleaded guilty Wednesday to theft and official misconduct.

Christopher Leduc of Newburgh was arrested and charged in March 2020 with misdemeanor theft and official misconduct, a Level 6 felony, after Evansville police said he'd stolen money from the home of a deceased person in Newburgh during a death investigation there on Feb. 9, 2020.

Leduc will be sentenced March 8 in Vanderburgh County Circuit Court.

EPD officers had been called to the 6600 block of Newburgh Road, where a person reporting a death told detectives he found money totaling $1,000 inside a Wells Fargo Bank envelope. As a deputy coroner, Leduc took over the investigation.

Local news:Jolt sends 14-year-old to burn unit after incident at Vanderburgh County business

Later, family members of the deceased told police that Leduc had given them a voucher for the money found inside the envelope — but only for $826. That kicked off an official misconduct investigation that included search warrants for Leduc's residence.

There, police found allegedly found a white plastic bag in a trash can outside Leduc's home that contained prescription medication from the person of a previous death investigation. Leduc was relieved of his duties as deputy coroner, charged and suspended without pay from the Evansville Fire Department.

At the time of Leduc's arrest, Warrick County Coroner Sarah Seaton, who had been running against Leduc in the county coroner election, said his actions were a "huge breach of trust" between the city and the public.

Contact Ray Couture at rcouture@courierpress.com or on Twitter @raybc94