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[Southsider2k12]

I had been waiting to see this dug into locally, but I hadn't seen anything yet, so I am going to go ahead and post these stories.

In-coming Controller Donna Pappas had her office come up with what was at first suspected to be $50,000, missing. After investigations, that number fell to $3700, but it has yet to be accounted for. Apparently the funds came from cash the city received, which was left sitting in envelopes on an employee of the Clerk-Treasurers Office's desk (in Portage).

Another interesting twist in this that the investigation taken by the state found that the procedures and controls in the office were lacking, which would fall squarely on Pappas as the Clerk-Treasurer. They do not believe that theft occurred, or that Pappas knew about this until the money was figured out as missing after months.

http://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/porter/...a2c6e49fbc.html

Finger-pointing continues in Portage missing money case

By Joyce Russell joyce.russell@nwi.com, (219) 762-1397, ext. 2222 | Posted: Friday, January 7, 2011 12:00 am | (10) Comments

PORTAGE | The $3,700 discovered missing from city coffers last year has officials pointing fingers.

A State Board of Accounts special investigation report released Thursday confirmed the missing money and said the shortage was caused by funds taken in by the city's Police Department but not properly deposited in the bank. The audit blames procedures and a lack of controls in place at the time, but it does not blame any individual or department involved.

Deciding who is at fault may be up to the Indiana attorney general's office or Porter County prosecutor's office. The report was turned over to both agencies Thursday for possible further investigation and action, said Mike Bozymski, deputy state examiner with the State Board of Accounts.

Porter County Prosecutor Brian Gensel said he received the report and will review it before making a determination on whether his office will take action.

The issue arose last year when Porter County police were asked to investigate nearly $50,000 in missing funds. Most of the money, collected from various Police Department fees, was found in unopened envelopes in a clerk-treasurer department employee's drawer, officials said.

Police said the employee agreed to undergo a voice stress test in which she was asked if she stole any of the money. She answered that she did not steal it, and the voice stress test showed no deception on her part.

No formal charges were filed, and the county closed the case. The employee was disciplined.

Procedures also were changed to prevent the problem from occurring again.

But the remaining $3,700 has not been found. It is unknown whether it is simply missing or misplaced or if it was stolen.

Clerk-Treasurer Donna Pappas said no one in her department has the money and believes the problem lies within the Police Department. Mayor Olga Velazquez and Police Chief Mark Becker said they believe the money was misplaced or taken from Pappas' office. Pappas is challenging Velazquez in the May 3 Democrat primary for a chance at the mayor's seat.

"I want to find out what happened to the money. (The police) say they brought it over, and I don't have anything saying they did," said Pappas, who has offered for herself and her staff to take a voice stress test to clear themselves. She said she also contacted the Indiana State Police to continue the investigation, but it declined to get involved.

"I am confident that the issue wasn't within the Police Department," Velazquez said. "There were envelopes found in and around the clerk-treasurer's office. They hadn't deposited the money."

"I don't even have a hint of suspicion that it was lost on this end," said Becker, adding that they had a "pretty solid chain of custody for the money" while it was at the Police Department.

Both Pappas and Velazquez said they would like to see the investigation continue.

"That money should be accounted for," Velazquez said.

Read more: http://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/porter/...l#ixzz1h6jzi65q