CLEVELAND — Cleveland Chief City Planner Kimberly Scott was arraigned on felony theft charges on Friday morning.
A judge issued a personal bond for her.
A pretrial hearing has been set for Oct. 15.
What happened?
According to an arrest warrant, Scott is accused of falsifying FMLA paperwork and stealing 117 hours of paid leave from the City of Cleveland.
She has been placed on administrative leave without pay.
The alleged victim in this case is Farid Abdul Malik, who passed away in June 2025.
One of Malik's daughters, Saana, spoke with News 5's Kaylee Olivas over the phone on Wednesday.
"I'm disappointed," she said.
Saana said Scott has been a family friend of theirs for many years, even close enough that the kids in their family would refer to Scott as an aunt.
However, Saana said that friendship has been severed because Scott allegedly pretended to be married to her father for financial gain after his death.
"She said that she's his wife. She put it on the application," Saana said. "She lied. She lied."
Saana sent News 5 two death certificates.
The first death certificate shows her father is married to her mother, Sauda.
The second death certificate, which Saana said is doctored, states Scott is married to Saana's father.
The "doctored" death certificate is not cited in the arrest warrant, though.
"That's stealing, and you're stealing from an elderly man and an elderly woman who helped you," Saana said. "Justice for Sauda. That's what I want, you know, that's the rallying cry that we have now. Justice for Sauda."
Scott has worked for Cleveland since 2007, and in her position, oversees and reviews development plans for projects done in Cleveland.
