Report details Auditor of State’s Investigation into former Village of Fort Loramie fiscal officer and missing utility receipts

Findings for recovery totaling $24,834 were issued last week against the former fiscal officer for the Village of Fort Loramie, who was convicted following an investigation into nearly $14,000 in missing utility receipts.

Carolyn J. Gasson pleaded guilty in May 2023 to a misdemeanor count of unauthorized use of property and was sentenced to five years community control, as part of a plea agreement filed in Shelby County Common Pleas Court.

The findings for recovery matched the court-ordered restitution in the case, which included misappropriated receipts and audit costs. Gasson has already paid the total in full.

Gasson was fired from her position as fiscal officer in July 2019 after village officials determined she had manipulated utility account records. The Auditor of State’s Special Investigations Unit (SIU) began its review in October 2019, checking records from a 66-month period and finding dozens of instances where utility payments, customer security deposits and other miscellaneous receipts were collected but not deposited into the Village’s bank account.

SIU ultimately determined a total of $13,908 was misappropriated while Gasson served as fiscal officer and was the only person collecting the funds.

A special audit report detailing SIU’s investigation into the matter is available online (ohioauditor.gov/auditsearch/search.aspx).

Since 2019, the Special Investigations Unit has assisted in 112 convictions resulting in more than $8.2 million in restitution. The team receives hundreds of tips of suspected fraud annually. Tips can be submitted anonymously online or via SIU’s fraud hotline at 866-FRAUD-OH (866-372-8364).