Former Macomb County clerk charged with larceny

WARREN, Mich. (AP) — A political novice who rode President Donald Trump's popularity to a countywide office in suburban Detroit has been charged with withdrawing $1,660 from an elderly woman's bank account.

The Macomb County prosecutor announced a larceny charge Wednesday against Karen Spranger.

Spranger was the county clerk for 15 months before a judge removed her from office in 2018 . A judge said she wasn't living at a Warren house when she filed to run for clerk in 2016. The house had no utilities.

Police say Spranger's whereabouts are unknown. Investigators haven't been able to find her for an interview. Prosecutor Eric Smith says, "Do the right thing and turn yourself in."

Spranger was unknown before she won the clerk's race as a Republican. She benefited from the Trump's popularity. He got 53 percent of the vote in Macomb County.