WESTFIELD, Iowa (AP) — A former city clerk accused of stealing from a northwest Iowa community has pleaded not guilty.

The Sioux City Journal reports that 50-year-old Angela Sorensen filed a written plea Thursday in Plymouth County District Court. The charges: theft and ongoing criminal conduct.

Sorensen had been clerk in Westfield from May 25, 2013, until she quit in August 2017. A special state audit of the city books shows auditors identified nearly $40,000 of utility payments to the city that were never deposited.

Auditors also said Sorensen was overpaid by more than $13,000 during the 4½ years and said she wrote herself about $4,300 worth of unauthorized checks.