A four-month audit of the Erie County Clerk’s Office has uncovered missing money, altered deposit records, bad fiscal oversight, bank-flagged discrepancies and numerous gun permit overcharges. In addition, according to the Comptroller’s Office, the Clerk’s Office was either unable or unwilling to provide supporting documentation or explanations for many of the serious deficiencies found by auditors.
A review of only two months worth of data from last year found thousands of dollars unaccounted for and some obvious document manipulation that could potentially signal fraud and theft of public money.
For several months, backed by the recommendation of an outside auditor, Comptroller Kevin Hardwick has been trying to get access to the County Clerk’s Office accounts, to no avail, until now.
The audit also found comparatively “minor” issues related to Clerk’s Office pistol permit staff being given improper access to state mental health records and a failure to collect or keep certain fees owed to the county.
While Comptroller Kevin Hardwick did not accuse employees in the Clerk’s Office of committing fraud, he has notified criminal investigators and acknowledged that the lack of internal controls and proper fiscal oversight that were highlighted in the lengthy…
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