The Reporter covers Miller, Morgan and Camden County in Central Missouri's Lake of the Ozarks and is published once per week on Wednesdays.

 

Published December 17, 2014

Audit follow-up leads to arrest

By Jeff Thompson
MORGAN COUNTY - A follow-up to the county’s state audit findings - issued in April 2014 - helped reveal $18,000 missing from the sheriff department’s evidence cash safe which resulted in an arrest.

A warrant for the arrest of Tami A. Davis was issued on Nov. 7; she was charged with felony theft/stealing less than $25,000 dating back to May of 2013 and running through this year.

A case review is set for Jan. 22, 2015.

According to the State Auditor’s Office (SAO), the missing money was discovered two months ago and the investigation remains ongoing.

“Further investigation by the Sheriff's office in October 2014 revealed approximately $18,000 in bond receipts missing from the office and some disbursements of receipts had not been remitted to the County Treasurer,” the SAO stated. “The clerk primarily responsible for bonds was terminated on October 15, 2014, and has since been charged with theft related to the missing bond monies.”

The April 2014 audit follow-up is part of the SAO’s “Auditor's Follow-up Team to Effect Recommendations” (AFTER) program.

Other AFTER findings include:
* The County Commission and County Clerk reinstating the General Revenue Fund's property tax rate ceiling and submitting amended forms to the State Auditor's office in July 2014.

The April audit revealed the county had incorrectly certified a property tax rate with a voluntary reduction instead of a sales tax reduction for the three years ending Dec. 31, 2008 as well as calculating a sales tax reduction not reporting or reduce the property tax levy for the sales tax reduction for the three years ending on Dec. 31, 2011.

The county also failed to calculate a sales tax reduction for the year ending on Dec, 31, 2012.

According to the AFTER findings, the County Clerk recalculated the sales tax reductions for prior years (through 2013) and determined the county had under-collected General Revenue Fund property taxes by approximately $600,000 in total since 2009.

“The County Commission has developed a plan to collect this $600,000 over the next two years by reducing the sales tax reduction amounts each year when setting the General Revenue Fund property tax levy,” the AFTER report stated.

April 2014 audit findings showed “significant weaknesses continued to exist in the Sheriff’s controls and procedures despite similar findings related to the Sheriff’s office in our prior reports.”

However, the AFTER report revealed the Morgan County Sheriff’s Department (MCSD) has begun implementing corrections in segregation of accounting duties, receipt records and deposits, inmate refunds and disbursements.

In addition, corrections in the county’s property tax controls and procedures have also been implemented.

State Auditor Tom Schweich officially unveiled the AFTER program as well as a rapid response program in early 2011.

The rapid response program - dubbed the Auditor's Swift Assessment Program (ASAP) - focuses on serious allegations of fraud, waste or abuse, while AFTER ensures audit recommendations are implemented in a timely manner, according to Schweich.

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