All suspects are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
(Shoshoni, WY) – Jeannie Kroenke, the former Assistant Director for the Shoshoni Senior Center who was charged with felony exploitation of a vulnerable adult back in July, now faces an additional charge of felony theft (aggregate) stemming from separate incidents involving the Shoshoni Chamber of Commerce, according to a recent release from Shoshoni Police Department (SPD) Chief Chris Konija.
“Following the initial arrest of Jeannie Kroenke for exploitation of a vulnerable adult, the Shoshoni Police Department has continued to investigate and follow up on any information received,” the release states. “Following the examination of additional information, investigators have expanded the scope of the initial investigation of Jeannie Kroenke.”
“As a result of the expanded scope of the investigation, Jeannie Kroenke was arrested Friday, September 4, 2026 for Felony Theft in connection with the embezzlement of funds from the Shoshoni Chamber of Commerce, where she served as the Chamber’s President.
The Shoshoni Police Department remains committed to following any new information or development of this matter and will release additional information at a later date as this remains an active investigation.”
New Charge
According to the case affidavit filed on September 8, the SPD received banking information from the Shoshoni Chamber of Commerce on September 3.
The Chamber’s account is held with a local bank, and after reviewing bank statements from March through June of this year, the SPD noticed multiple cash withdrawals.
According to the affidavit, the total cash withdrawals were approximately $8,018, with one additional purchase charge in April at a local vape shop for $181.24.
“The rest of the charges appeared to be normal operating costs,” the affidavit states. “The grand total of the cash withdrawals and non-authorized purchases is $8,199.24.”
Investigators later interviewed a Chamber board member on September 4, who stated she and Kroenke had “come onto the Chamber of Commerce Board, January of this year.” The board member told the SPD that she was responsible for reconciling the books, and that both she and Kroenke “were given the only two debit cards for the Chamber’s bank account.”
The board member went on to inform the SPD that in February of this year, she was no longer able to complete her duties for the Chamber, and that “Kroenke offered to take them over for her,” adding that “Kroenke had the only key to the Chamber’s mailbox and would keep the mailed bank records.” She also told investigators that she “had no idea anything was wrong with the Chamber’s account.”
The board member shared that she recently asked for the past banking records from Kroenke, who “would not give them to her,” but she was able to “access the records from the online bank account and could see all the cash withdrawals.”
The board member then said that when she called Kroenke to confront her with this information, Kroenke “tried to deny it” at first, but then asked her to “please not report it because she would get into trouble.”
The board member soon brought the banking information to the SPD and notified the other members on the Chamber Board, all of whom she said were “unaware of the cash withdrawals.”
The board member also provided the SPD with a copy of the Chamber’s meeting records and added that “they (Chamber members) are not allowed to take cash out of the account unless it is approved by the board, which these were not.”
A felony theft (aggregate) charge carries a maximum sentence of 10 years imprisonment and a $10,000 fine.
Kroenke’s preliminary hearing concerning this charge has been set for September 25.
Exploitation of a Vulnerable Adult
As stated above, Kroenke was charged with felony exploitation of a vulnerable adult and arrested this summer after the SPD was contacted by a representative from a local bank “regarding financial exploitation of an elderly adult.” The representative reported that Kroenke’s account was being monitored after several large checks from a 93-year-old Shoshoni resident were deposited into it. Investigators soon found that nine checks were made payable to Kroenke from April of 2025 to June of 2026, totaling $33,400. (Read the full investigation breakdown here.)
Kroenke went on to plead “not guilty” to the charge at her arraignment hearing on August 17. At that time, she was not in custody after having posted bond on July 28, according to court filings.
Following the plea, a jury trial was scheduled for January 25, 2027.
County 10 will provide additional details on the cases as they become available, which can be viewed here.