Columbus – A former court clerk owes the Village of Wintersville (Jefferson County) more than $3,000 for cash payments she collected but never deposited during 2015, according to a report released today by Auditor of State Dave Yost. 

A financial audit of the village determined that former Magistrate Court Clerk Angela Householder was responsible for processing incoming payments and depositing them into the village’s bank account until she abruptly left her position in December 2015.

Records showed Householder collected cash payments totaling $3,368 from April through December 2015, but the funds never made it to the bank. 

“A simple comparison of collections and deposits could have flagged these missing dollars before they started piling up,” Auditor Yost said. “The village needs to bolster its oversight of transactions to ensure incoming dollars make it to the bank intact.”

Auditors issued a $3,368 finding for recovery against Householder because she was responsible for handling the funds. She has yet to repay the finding.

A previous audit released in September 2015 contains a similar finding for recovery against Householder for  $3,120 she collected but failed to deposit from January 2013 through March 2015. She repaid that finding.

A special report published by Auditor Yost in November highlights the dangers local governments face when collection processes go unchecked. According to the report, more than $3.4 million in payments received by local governments in the past decade never made it into the government accounts.

A full copy of this report is available online.

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The Auditor of State’s office, one of five independently elected statewide offices in Ohio, is responsible for auditing more than 5,900 state and local government agencies.  Under the direction of Auditor Dave Yost, the office also provides financial services to local governments, investigates and prevents fraud in public agencies and promotes transparency in government.

Contact:
Beth Gianforcaro
Press Secretary
614-644-1111