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$21,190 Missing from Village of Golf Manor

Mayor’s Court Clerk Failed to Deposit Fine Collections and Bond Payments

Thursday, July 29, 2010

Hamilton County - Auditor of State Mary Taylor today released the special audit investigation of the village of Golf Manor, revealing more than $20,000 missing from mayor’s court bank accounts.  The audit also issues a finding for recovery for the missing funds against Kristen Wocher, the former mayor’s court clerk and police chief’s assistant.
 
“Auditors and investigators in my office worked directly with village officials to identify the missing funds,” Taylor said.  “I encourage village officials to follow the recommendations outlined in this report to reduce their risk of future fraud and abuse.”
 
Taylor’s office initiated a special audit of the village’s mayor’s court on April 1, 2009 after being contacted by Village Police Chief Eddie Taylor. When Chief Taylor took office, he noted that no deposits had been made to mayor’s court bank accounts in January or February 2009.  
 
As mayor’s court clerk for the village, Wocher was responsible for collecting payments of fines and bond payments, then depositing those collections into the appropriate bank accounts and recording the information in the county’s crimes database.
 
The Auditor of State’s investigation revealed a total of $21,190 in public funds collected from taxpayers, but never deposited into village bank accounts.  These missing funds were identified as a finding for recovery, or public monies collected but unaccounted for, against Wocher.  At the time of the release of the report today, the missing funds had not been repaid to the village.
 
A special audit targets a specific area of an entity and is initiated to review allegations of fraud or theft.  The Auditor of State’s office is currently conducting more than 20 special audits throughout the state.
 
A copy of the complete audit is available online.
 

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The Ohio Auditor of State’s office is a leader in the government accounting and auditing field, earning prestigious national honors from the Government Finance Officers Association, the National White Collar Crime Center and the National State Auditors Association.

Contact:
Julia Debes
Deputy Press Secretary
(614) 644-1111