Blair County Deputy Treasurer Charged With Stealing Nearly $18,000 in Taxpayer Funds and Gambling It Away on Skill Machines

Blair County’s Republican Deputy Treasurer, Brenda Ann Bryan, is facing felony theft charges after allegedly stealing nearly $18,000 in taxpayer funds and gambling the money away on Skill machines. Bryan, 58, of Altoona, was arraigned on July 24 and released on $75,000 unsecured bail.

According to investigators, Bryan showed up at the Blair County Courthouse on February 26 intending to resign. Instead, she reportedly admitted to stealing county deposits over a span of several months. Hollidaysburg Borough police were called to the courthouse, where officials said Bryan confessed to taking funds that were supposed to be deposited into county accounts. Officers noticed a blue county deposit bag in her tote and brought her to the police station for a formal interview.

During a recorded interview, Bryan allegedly told police she had taken deposits between December 2024 and February 2025 and used the money to gamble on Skill machines. She reportedly said she kept the deposit slips in her bag so she could remember how much she owed and explained that she hoped a large gambling win would allow her to pay the money back before anyone realized it was missing. According to the complaint, Bryan told officers she “couldn’t live like this” and felt she had to confess.

A county audit found four deposits that were never made: $501 and $750 on December 11, 2024, $10,936.20 on January 3, 2025, and $5,800 on February 6, 2025. In total, $17,987.20 in taxpayer money was missing.

Blair County Commissioner Dave Kessling said the incident was a serious breach of public trust, noting that residents expect elected officials and county employees to safeguard public funds. Bryan, a Republican sworn in as Deputy Treasurer in December 2023, resigned the day she confessed. County officials say they are reviewing internal procedures to prevent similar incidents.