This just in from the Inspector General:
Monday, July 23, 2012 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
INSPECTOR GENERAL ALLEGES THREE LIBRARY WORKERS EMBEZZLED MORE THAN $9,000
FREE LIBRARY WILL TERMINATE EMPLOYEES, SUSPEND MANAGERS
Philadelphia, July 23, 2012 – Following an OIG investigation establishing that three Free Library of Philadelphia employees embezzled more than $9,000 in overdue book fines, Free Library President and CEO Siobhan Reardon has accepted the OIG's recommendation to terminate the employees and suspend one manager, and demote a second, who together failed to exercise proper fiscal oversight.
The OIG established that Natalie Collins, Linda Robinson and Patricia Finley – library assistants at the Haddington, Kingsessing and Wyoming branches respectively – had stolen a total of $9,054.47 in library funds in three separate schemes from May 2009 to November 2010. The OIG also found that David Utz and Susan Rigsby, then-branch managers at Kingsessing and Wyoming respectively, had enabled the embezzlement with poor supervision.
"Stealing overdue book fines from the Free Library is a sad commentary on public service gone awry, but rest assured, the Office of Inspector General will investigate cases like this and any others brought to our attention," said Inspector General Amy Kurland. "This Administration is committed to honest, transparent government, and while the vast majority of employees are hard-working, committed public servants, our message to wrong-doers is 'watch out, we're coming for you.' This case also underlines the importance of effective supervisory oversight as a bulwark against fraud and corruption. Managers will be held accountable when they fail to uphold the public trust."
Collins, Robinson and Finley were the only employees in their branches who prepared bank deposit documentation, delivered money to the bank, sent deposit documentation to the Free Library Foundation and maintained oversight of branch deposit documentation. Many bank deposit records were missing and incomplete at all three branches, and there were numerous discrepancies between the Foundation's bank account statements and records kept by the branches.
In addition to investigating misconduct in this case, the OIG also analyzed the Free Library's policies and procedures for processing payments from patrons. The Free Library has already adopted many of the recommendations in the OIG's policy-recommendation report to prevent future embezzlements.
The policy-recommendation report is available under the reports tab at www.phila.gov/oig.