A recent audit of the Springhill City Court in Louisiana has uncovered $11,413 in unauthorized charges on a court credit card. The audit, which was conducted by the Louisiana Legislative Auditor’s Office, found that 62 unauthorized charges were made on the credit card over an extended period.
Audit Findings
The audit did not identify the person responsible for the charges, and the status of any investigation is unknown. According to the audit, the court lacked basic controls to properly monitor and document spending. The court has since canceled the credit card and implemented new procedures to prevent similar incidents in the future.
Judge Stuart McMahen represented to auditors that he contacted the Webster Parish Sheriff’s Office about the unauthorized charges. However, Sheriff Jason Parker stated that his office did not conduct an investigation because McMahen said the charges were part of a scam and the money has since been reimbursed.
Corrective Actions
The court has taken steps to address the weaknesses in its internal controls. These include maintaining a single authorized cardholder account, securely storing credit card information, and implementing enhanced review and approval procedures for credit card transactions.
Original reporting: KTBS 3 (Shreveport) — read the source article.
