First Crundwell auction closes at nearly $95k
DIXON – Going, going, (almost gone).
A 2-day online auction of 114 lots of furniture, electronics, appliances, and other items from the Englewood, Fla., vacation home of Rita Crundwell brought in $94,975 by the time it closed Friday night.
The top-selling item, a heavy wood farmhouse kitchen table and chairs, sold for $10,750, while the lowest-selling item was a frog garden ornament for $16.
The U.S. Marshals Service said Friday that 557 bidders registered for the online auction at www.professionalauction.com.
An online auction to sell items at Crundwell’s Dixon home and horse ranch ends today at 1 p.m.
Crundwell, 59, pleaded guilty Nov. 14 to federal wire fraud, a scheme she admitted using to steal nearly $54 million in city funds since 1990.
She will be sentenced Feb. 14 and faces up to 20 years in prison. She also is charged with 60 counts of theft in Lee County. She has a pretrial conference Dec. 19.
Since Crundwell was indicted May 1, the U.S. Marshals Service has sold many of her assets, which includes her herd of horses, vehicles, trailers, tack, and other items.
The assets sold so far have fetched about $7.4 million.
Proceeds from the sale, minus costs, will be held in escrow until the case is resolved.
