A former employee of REMAX Bridge Realty accused of embezzling more than $127,000 from tenants and landlords appeared in 7th District Court Wednesday for a preliminary hearing before Judge Brian Bolinder.
Katie Jo Childs, who worked for the property management company from April 2023 until her termination in October 2024, faces two second-degree felony charges: theft and communications fraud. Judge Bolinder ruled there was sufficient evidence for the case to proceed to trial, which is scheduled for Nov. 18–21.
Bolinder disclosed at the start of the hearing that he had previously rented from Bridge Realty when he moved to Carbon County but said that relationship ended in June 2024. Attorneys were moved into a private breakout room to discuss any potential conflict of interest. Childs’ attorney, Craig Johnson, said the defense was prepared to move forward.
Carla Saccomano, a longtime REMAX property manager, was the prosecution’s first witness. She testified that Childs was hired after expressing dissatisfaction with her previous job and worked part-time under both Saccomano and REMAX broker Jae Potter. Childs was trained on the AppFolio system used to manage leases, payments and maintenance requests.
Saccomano also advised that accepting payment through Venmo and Cash App were illegal advising that Childs would have never been advised that there were acceptable forms of payment.
According to Saccomano, the case began to unravel after Childs called in sick during a hunting trip in October 2024. Saccomano’s daughter found a list of tenants reportedly behind on rent on Childs’ desk. Suspicious of the unusually high amounts owed, some as much as $6,000, Saccomano began making calls.
She testified that seven tenants on the list confirmed they had paid rent, many providing receipts or screenshots of payments made directly to Childs through Venmo, Cash App or in cash. Saccomano said Childs’ name appeared as the only signature on some receipts, but no corresponding payments were logged in the official system.
Further investigation allegedly revealed forged lease agreements, missing security deposits and inconsistent rental start dates. Saccomano shared that Potter was forced to take out a personal loan to reimburse landlords, according to court documents.
Prosecutor Christian Bryner presented evidence including altered lease agreements and reimbursement checks issued by REMAX. Saccomano estimated a total of $130,000 had been misappropriated, though she could not determine how much Childs had kept for herself.
Several tenants testified, all stating they had paid Childs directly through Venmo or in cash, with some months being paid in advance. They were later informed that their payments had never been received by REMAX. Each of them testifying to working directly with Childs and verifying the receipts provided by prosecution.
Price City Detective Kelly Maynes, who led the investigation, testified that Childs’ financial accounts showed no evidence she had passed the money along to landlords. Maynes estimated the actual amount taken from tenants to be approximately $127,000. Additional damages to REMAX’s business reputation and recovery costs brought the total to about $264,000, he said.
Childs declined to testify and did not present any witnesses. Her attorney questioned the accuracy of Saccomano’s internal investigation and whether Childs had made any direct payments to landlords or Potter. Saccomano responded that no such evidence was found.
Judge Bolinder found that the state met its burden of proof and scheduled a four-day jury trial for Nov. 18. A final pretrial hearing was set for Oct. 20, the deadline for plea agreements and jury questionnaire submissions.
Childs remains free pending trial.
