A report on a special investigation of the City of Menlo has just been released by Auditor of State Mary Mosiman.

The special investigation was conducted upon request from city officials after concerns had arisen regarding certain transactions prepared by former City Clerk Brenda Simmons, and it examines the period from January 1, 2001, to May 31, 2013.

Mosiman reports that the special investigation identified almost $83,000 of improper and unsupported disbursements.  Such improper disbursements include more than $62,000 of payments made by the City of Menlo for health insurance coverage that should have been paid by Simmons and John Freeman, the City’s former maintenance employee.

Another unwarranted disbursement is the almost $13,000 of additional payroll issued to Simmons because of an improper increase in hourly wages and the City’s share of related FICA and IPERS payments.

Mosiman’s report finds that about $1,200 of unsupported disbursements were identified in her audit, of which $1,073 of payments were made to Simmons and $187.50 of payments were made to Simmons’ husband.

Mosiman says it is not possible to determine if additional improper disbursements were made because sufficient records were not readily available.

Copies of Mosiman’s report have been filed with the Division of Criminal Investigation, the Guthrie County Attorney’s Office and the Attorney General’s Office.

The report can also be found HERE.