PRS-2000-014

State Auditor Ralph Campbell released a special review (numbered INV-0232) of the North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Division of Forest Resources. "We received allegations in August of this year that an accounting clerk in the Division of Forest Resources was entering bogus data into the Accounts Payable System to generate phony checks," stated Auditor Campbell. "Our review found that the accounting clerk initiated payments totaling $27,931.60 to a fictitious vendor. The accounting clerk admitted that she entered fabricated information, but denied receiving the money, saying it was received by one of her sisters for her silence about other personal matters. "in a second situation involving a renovation project in Martin County, we found an overpayment of $1,113 to ELCON, a construction company that the accounting clerk said she owned with her husband. This overpayment occurred even though there were no change orders, no additional invoices, or even discussions of additional work," noted Auditor Campbell.