County councilman met with state investigator on allegations against auditor, commissioner
MUNCIE, Ind. — The call for a forensic audit of two offices in Delaware County government is drawing interest from the Indiana State Board of Accounts.
County council member Ryan Webb, who called for such an audit in February, said last week that he planned to meet with Ed Wheele, director of special investigations for the SBOA, on April 9.
On April 1, Wheele had sent an email to Webb, requesting a meeting concerning the operations of the Delaware County Commissioners' office and the county auditor's office.
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"Ryan, I appreciate you sending this information. Would you be available to meet and discuss these allegations?," Wheele said in an email to Webb.
The two men planned to discuss Webb's allegations of "questionable uses of taxpayer dollars" by commissioners and what he called "chaos" and "failures" in the office of Auditor Ed Carroll.
Carroll responded to Webb's allegations last week after The Star Press published a story about Webb's request.
"We have no issue with an audit," Carroll said in a prepared statement. "In fact, we welcome the ... (State Board of Accounts) to come in to perform an audit.
"We currently perform seven audits annually which includes all the departments within Delaware County government and includes, but not limited to, Grants, Contracts, revenues and all expenditure claims."
Carroll said that Webb's call for an audit of his office is a "political ploy" and "a waste of time and a big waste of taxpayers' money. Again, audits are done in every office, including the auditor’s office every year."
But forensic audits differ from other audits in that those performing the inspection of the records would be seeking evidence that potentially could be used in court. They are not the same as a regular or annual audits.
Carroll, who also serves as the chairman of the Delaware County Republican Party, and Webb have been at odds before.
The GOP has split in the county between its traditional establishment and a more populist group, typified by Webb, who aggressively questions department heads about spending during county council meetings and has been openly critical of fellow Republicans.
In the past year, the auditor's office has lost a number of experienced employees, and Webb asserts that it has caused problems in the office's operations. In Indiana, the county auditor's office examines and settles all financial accounts and demands chargeable against the county.
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Former Chief Deputy Auditor Charlie Richmond, who said he was leaving his position as of Thursday last week and relocating to Texas, said the office has a lot of new people who are learning but that they have been working hard. Richmond had served as chief deputy for the previous county auditor, Steve Craycraft. Carroll said he plans to pay Richmond to continue to help advise him in the operation of the auditor's office from Texas.
Some county employees did not have federal tax deductions taken out of their pay during 2023. Sheriff Tony Skinner said that affected a few of the people in his department.
Carroll said those employees, who make a small salary with the county, failed to properly fill out forms connected with the deductions. If they make money from a second job the lack of withholding can cause them to not have enough money withheld to cover their tax. But that is not the fault of the auditor.
Webb has also questioned the remodeling of the auditor's office in the Delaware County Building, which he said the county council never approved spending of money for a remodel.
"That includes upgrades such as new paint, carpet, a new conference room with a large flat-screen TV," Webb said in an email to Carroll.
Carrol responded, "The changes in the Auditor's office were necessary and important as the flooring and carpet in the office had worn down to the point that it created a safety hazard for the employees and the general public. The Auditor's office receives a lot of traffic from the general public inquiring about property, property taxes and tax sales throughout the year and maintaining a safe environment is important to protect the county."
The auditor also told Webb the office is "upgrading its office software and reports to comply with new GAAP accounting requirements as well as help with accessibility issues to records. A training location was needed in the office for new and current employees to receive remote training on the new software that is being required because of additional requirements for audits."
He also said the funds were paid from the unappropriated tax sale amounts received by the county and had been sitting in the account for three years.
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"Traditionally, auditors in Delaware County and other counties have used this money for improvements to their office for tax sale purposes," he said.
Carrol said the expense of remodeling was about $40,000, and added that "the project could have had a total cost in excess of $100,000, but the Auditor's office worked with the County's building staff and Community Corrections to reduce the labor costs."
Regarding the county commissioners office, Webb contends James King, president of the commissioners, along with Delaware County economic developer Brad Bookout, and Bookout's associate Bill Walters, traveled to Las Vegas for a “guys' trip" and then falsely labeled the excursion "as an economic development expenditure."
Webb wrote that the officials stayed for multiple days in order to go to the “SHOT Show," which Webb called "the biggest gun show in the country."
Webb is seeking re-election for one of the three at-large seats on county council.
David Penticuff is a reporter with The Star Press. He can be contacted @spnews@muncie.gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Muncie Star Press: Investigator takes interest in allegations from county councilman
