A villainous police chief and his wife allegedly stole more than $30,000 from a Christmas fund intended for impoverished children in the Georgia county he served.
Woodrow “Peewee” Wilson Burkhalter, 55, and his wife Angela, 53, allegedly pocketed a staggering $33,000 from the Atkinson County Christmas Fund every year from 2019 to 2025, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation revealed Tuesday.
Burkhalter served as the chief of police in Pearson, Georgia — located in the heart of Atkinson County — from 2020 to 2024, according to a 2024 announcement from the Georgia Association of Chiefs of Police.
He was also designated as a manager for the fund, which was created to buy Christmas gifts for underprivileged children who may not otherwise get anything under their trees.
The ousted top cop faces 28 counts of theft by conversion.
His wife faces just one count of party to the crime by theft by taking and one count of party to the crime of theft by conversion.
The Grinchy couple was arrested on Tuesday and booked in the Atkinson County Jail together.
Jason Joyner, the mayor of Pearson, said that the discovery of the Burkhalters’ purported scheme marked “a sad day” for the city.
“It’s heartbreaking to know that funds meant for our children during Christmas did not reach them,” Joyner wrote in a statement to WALB.
“We’re going to keep moving forward, keep things open and honest, and keep doing what’s best for our community,” he added.
In January, Pearson’s deputy city clerk, who is also the daughter of a city councilman, was arrested when she was allegedly caught driving under the influence. She was arrested the year before when she allegedly fired a gun at a vehicle that her child and his father were inside, WALB reported.
In 2025, Joyner’s predecessor, who was still mayor at the time, and the former city clerk were arrested at the end of a longstanding GBI corruption probe.
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