The City of Atlanta's former chief financial officer (CFO) was sentenced to serve 36 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $177,197.48 and a fine of $10,000 for abusing his position to steal public money and obstruct the IRS.

According to court documents, from 2011 to 2018, the 60-year-old defendant oversaw the City of Atlanta's Department of Finance, in which his primary responsibility was to manage the city's financial condition.

At least as early as 2015, he devised and executed a scheme to use his authority as CFO to obtain money and property from Atlanta for his own use, including a scheme to pay for thousands of dollars in personal travel expenses for himself, his family, and his travel companions, and to buy and possess restricted machine guns.

Further, while CFO, the defendant submitted years of fraudulent tax returns in which he claimed personal business expenses to lower what he owed in taxes.

During a 2015 audit of one of those returns, he lied to the IRS and obstructed auditors by submitting receipts for transactions that were paid by the City of Atlanta in connection with the defendant's official duties. The investigation later revealed the defendant had no personal business, and years of tax "deductions" were based on a lie. "City of Atlanta's Former Chief Financial Officer Sentenced to Prison for Federal Program Theft and Tax Obstruction" www.justice.gov (Aug. 27, 2024).

Commentary

Additional details of the "scheme to use his authority as CFO to obtain money and property from Atlanta for his own use" are not given.

An important step for investigating past financial wrongs is maintaining and preserving original financial records. Original records not only help monitor performance and profitability, but also ensure your organization is adhering to required practices (e.g., filing taxes annually, maintaining confidentiality, etc.).

These documents include payroll records, invoices, receipts, and other financial statements. An original, unaltered set of records can provide the benchmark to detect altered documents or unauthorized transactions.