Mayor Vera Marks, Council member Vanessa Hendrix, Financial Secretary Stephanie Harrison

Audit ties former Mineral Springs treasurer to $263,719 in questionable spending, including $92,040 in online gambling

Audit ties former Mineral Springs treasurer to $263,719 in questionable spending, including $92,040 in online gambling

By Field Walsh TXKtoday

MINERAL SPRINGS, Ark. (TXKtoday) State auditors have linked former Mineral Springs Recorder/Treasurer Denise Juniel to $263,719 in questionable transactions over three years, including more than $92,000 in online gambling charged to a city credit card.

The Arkansas Legislative Audit report, presented to lawmakers Friday, covers the Howard County city’s finances from Jan. 1, 2023, through Dec. 31, 2025. Juniel resigned Nov. 5, 2025, and was charged 12 days later.

Juniel, 59, faces one count of theft of property over $25,000, a Class B felony, and five counts of tampering with a public record, a Class D felony, in Howard County Circuit Court. She has pleaded not guilty. A pretrial hearing is set for Oct. 7, with a jury trial the week of Oct. 20.

According to an arrest affidavit by prosecutor’s investigator David Shelton, Juniel told auditors in a recorded interview Nov. 5, 2025, that she knowingly used the city credit card for gambling and used whiteout to erase line items on bank statements to hide it. A week later, after being advised of her rights, she told Shelton the auditors’ findings were correct and the card had been used on an online gambling site, the affidavit states. Investigators then estimated the loss at about $114,000.

Juniel was arrested Nov. 19 and released the same day on a $25,000 bond. Public defender Tisha Lea Martin represents her. Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Aaron Brasel of the Ninth West Judicial District is handling the case, which has been continued twice at the defense’s request.

A Class B felony carries five to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $15,000. Each Class D felony carries up to six years and a fine of up to $10,000. Charges are accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.

Prior theft case left city without bond coverage

At Friday’s Legislative Joint Auditing Committee meeting in Little Rock, Legislative Auditor Kevin White told lawmakers Juniel had a prior theft case involving public money. A 2012 audit of the Mineral Springs School District included a finding over timesheets she submitted, and she later pleaded guilty in Howard County District Court to misdemeanor theft of property, White said.

That conviction put Juniel on the Arkansas Fidelity Bond Program’s list of people who cannot be covered, White said, meaning the city’s bond coverage for her had been canceled. The audit has been referred to the bond board, which typically waits for criminal cases to end before deciding on reimbursement. The city may be unable to recover its losses through the state program.

“So the summation is the zebra didn’t change their stripes,” said Rep. Robin Lundstrum, R-Elm Springs, the committee’s House co-chair.

Mayor Vera Marks told the committee she hired Juniel while finishing an earlier term as mayor in 2021 and 2022, after the recorder/treasurer stepped down and no one else applied. Marks said she had “very little knowledge” of Juniel’s history.

Credit card charges

Auditors reviewed $190,855 in credit card transactions by Juniel and found $174,309 were improper:

  • $92,040 for online gambling.
  • $36,946 in personal purchases, including groceries, home items, clothing, streaming services, fuel and “buy now, pay later” charges.
  • $25,888 with no documentation.
  • $7,540 for expenses that appeared legitimate but lacked records.
  • $6,832 for undocumented travel.
  • $2,716 for fuel in a personal vehicle.
  • $2,347 in unallowable expenses.

Five credit card statements were altered to show different transactions, amounts and totals, auditors said.

Reimbursements and payroll

Juniel also received $55,931 in improper payments outside payroll, including $19,189 in undocumented travel reimbursements and $10,208 in duplicate reimbursements. A $300 check made out to her was endorsed and deposited, then altered in city records to appear voided.

The city paid $2,600 to Juniel for services from a company she owns and $5,771 to a company for which she earned sales commission, both in apparent conflict with state law.

Payroll reviews found another $33,479 in improper payments to Juniel, including $9,300 in loans repaid through payroll deductions, which the Arkansas Constitution prohibits, with $7,300 still owed at year’s end; $7,363 in park-related pay never authorized by ordinance; $5,009 in undocumented payments; $3,291 in vacation pay on top of salary for the same days; and $1,100 more than the council-approved $200 a month for serving as park director without a written contract.

Of the total, $34,896 came from the Parks and Recreation Activity Fund, $26,282 from the Volunteer Fire Department Fund, $5,933 from the Street Fund and $63,579 from water and sewer funds.

Other findings

None of the 25 city payments auditors tested had been approved. The city paid $5,741, including a $250 bonus, to the spouse of the mayor pro tem for contract labor without an authorizing ordinance, and spent $998 on seven pairs of men’s boots with no documented purpose.

Then-Mayor Bobby Tullis was paid $2,170 above his authorized salary for 62 days of around-the-clock monitoring of the city’s well, plus $300 for patrolling the city outside of payroll, a repeat finding. The city also loaned employees $11,350 in 2025, with $3,100 still outstanding.

Tullis resigned in March, city officials testified. Marks said he appointed her mayor pro tem in April 2025 and that she is finishing his term. She is unopposed for mayor in November.

“He had this baby all by himself until then. I only followed his lead,” Marks said of Tullis. “My name was not on any signed checks. I didn’t approve anything.”

Asked by Rep. Johnny Rye, R-Trumann, whether anyone reviewed the bank statements, Marks said there were no paper statements and Juniel was the only person who saw the accounts. “I did not, and apparently Bobby didn’t either,” she said.

Council member Vanessa Hendrix testified that the council was not given complete financial information and that when she asked for more, she was told the mayor decided what was presented at meetings.

Auditors said they found no one other than Juniel involved in the improper transactions. Whether others helped conceal the spending is a question for prosecutors, White said.

Financial Secretary Stephanie Harrison said the recorder/treasurer’s duties have been split and she now holds a hired position. Department heads must designate which fund pays each bill, two people sign every check and the city receives printed bank statements, officials said.

The city has not sued Juniel to recover the money. Rep. Matt Brown, R-Conway, urged it to do so, warning the statute of limitations is running and criminal restitution may fall short. Marks said the city has not checked other employees against the bond program’s exclusion list.