andrew woodberry
A former deputy director of the county school nutrition department diverted more than $12,000 from the program, according to a report from the state auditor’s office.
Andrew Woodbury, 44, was suspended and later fired.
He was indicted by a Hamilton County grand jury on one count of theft of property over $2,500, one count of forgery, one count of falsifying information to the state auditor, and one count of official misconduct.
Officials said, “The Office of the Comptroller has investigated allegations of misconduct related to Hamilton County Schools’ School Nutrition Office.” “It was initiated after I reported an allegation that he had abused his position for the purpose of…” personal benefit. “
Officials said, “HCSN warehouses store assets such as equipment and supplies that are currently not in use. If assets are found to be damaged or unusable, HCSN employees recommends that the property be repaired, scrapped, salvaged for parts, or sold at auction.” If the property is to be sold at auction, a Surplus Property Disposal Authorization Form must be completed by her HCSN Accounting Manager for each warehouse inventory asset, and this form must be completed by his HCSN Director, Hamilton County Superintendent of Schools, and Hamilton County Approval by signature is required. Chairman of the Board of Education.
“Once the approval process is complete, the asset can be put up for sale. During the study period, HCSN used GovDeals to facilitate the sale of surplus equipment. is an online marketplace that provides services for the sale of surplus assets to the public. ”
The report said Woodbury “intentionally and knowingly misappropriated assets valued at $12,374.68 by overstepping his authority as Assistant Director and circumventing HCSN’s established property disposition procedures.”
“Investigators determined that three GovDeals accounts existed in HCSN’s name. The third was identified as an unauthorized account created by Woodbury on October 18, 2021, and The proceeds were deposited directly into his personal bank account.
“Mr. Woodbury stated that the items sold through the unauthorized GovDeals account included:
– Sale of personal items; – Sale of items removed from HCSN trash; – Sale of surplus real estate assets of HCSN.
“Mr. Woodbury did not request or receive proper authorization from the HCSN Accounting Manager or the HCSN Directors to sell HCSN’s surplus property through the unauthorized GovDeals account.
“Mr. Woodbury further circumvented the approval process by signing his name and signature on the line designated for the HCSN Director on the Surplus Property Disposal Authorization Form for each property sold. The HCSN Accounting Manager The HCSN Director also did not give Ms. Woodbury consent to sign the authorization form on her behalf, but did not give Ms. Woodberry consent to sign the authorization form on her behalf, but subsequently mistakenly believed that Mr. Woodbury was authorized to sign authorization forms on behalf of the HCSN Director, which allowed Mr. Woodbury to sell unapproved surplus assets in GovDeals. I personally collect the proceeds from it.
”Woodbury’s first fraudulent listing was a stainless steel table. This table was listed on his unauthorized GovDeals account on October 18, 2021, the same day the account was created. The table sold to him for $160 and the sales proceeds were deposited directly into his personal bank account on November 5, 2021. The sale was discovered. The table was not classified as surplus property and was not approved for sale, according to HCSN officials.
“Mr. Woodbury told HCSN officials that he was paid for the table in cash, when in fact the proceeds of the sale were paid by direct deposit into his personal bank account. After being confronted with this information, Mr. , Mr. Woodbury delivered the cash from the sale of the table to HCSN on the 21st October 29, 2021.
“After the initial sale, Woodbury subsequently sold 18 additional HCSN properties without the knowledge or approval of HCSN staff prior to his suspension. All proceeds of the sale were deposited directly into Woodbury’s personal bank account. When Woodbury put the unapproved HCSN surplus property up for sale, according to the government’s agreement, Mr. Woodbury received a total of $2,304.33 from the sale of the unapproved HCSN surplus property, but HCSN authorities did not sell the surplus property. was valued at $12,374.68.
“Mr. Woodbury acknowledged that he had a responsibility to properly remit the proceeds to Hamilton County Schools in a timely manner. Mr. Woodbury refrained from fulfilling that obligation and did not remit the funds to Hamilton County Schools. Instead, some of the misappropriation was found in his office in the form of cash in an envelope.The total amount of cash in the envelope was $1,576.
“One envelope was labeled Stainless Steel Table Sale and contained $160, but the cash for the table sale had already been transferred to HCSN. After Woodbury’s suspension, Envelopes containing cash found in Woodbury office were properly transferred,” Hamilton County Schools by HCSN officials.
“Mr. Woodbury did not tell anyone about the cash in the envelope until after he was suspended and questioned by investigators. The table below shows the proceeds that were deposited directly into Mr. Woodbury’s personal bank account. , a monthly and yearly summary of the fair market value of HCSN assets sold,” as well as cash in a sealed envelope found on Woodbury’s desk.
”Mr. Woodbury knowingly exceeded his duties for personal gain by selling personal property in an unauthorized HCSN GovDeals account. In Mr. Woodbury’s unauthorized GovDeals account, 24 listings were identified as a combination of items he owned and items taken from Hamilton County dumpsters. 24 listings sold for a total of $1,219.11. Items removed from Hamilton County dumpsters are considered abandoned trash and are free for anyone to remove, and once collected by Mr. Woodbury, they become his property. Mr. Woodbury said he knew it was wrong for him to use an unauthorized HCSN GovDeals account to sell personal property. Mr. Woodbury also acknowledged that he never sought or received permission or authorization from HCSN officials to sell personal property on GovDeals using HCSN’s name. ”
The auditor discoveredA lack of internal controls and compliance allowed Woodbury to misappropriate HCSN assets.
“Defects included:
“Hamilton County Schools officials did not provide adequate oversight or separate financial commitments to the HCSN surplus property disposition process. Hamilton County Schools officials and Hamilton County Schools Board members must be aware of and review the authorized signatories before granting approval. If a document is signed by an unauthorized signer, the officer should make inquiries to verify authenticity and proper authority before granting signature approval.
“Due to lack of oversight by the authorities, HCSN’s surplus property disposal process proceeded despite the presence of unauthorized signatories on HCSN’s surplus property disposal authorization form. Failure to separate increases the risk of fraud, waste, or abuse.” Hamilton County Schools officials failed to coordinate assets sold in GovDeals and recovery of sale proceeds from GovDeals. HCSN Hamilton County Schools employees who are not involved in the surplus property disposition approval process or sale process are required to obtain monthly sales reports. Regardless of the third-party auction site used, proper reconciliation of sales proceeds ensures that all sales are authorized and appropriate, and that funds collected are accurately accounted for and credited in a timely manner. That’s guaranteed. ”
