COLUMBUS – Findings for recovery totaling $24,834 were issued Tuesday 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 (see?Map of SIU Convictions?since January 2019). 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).

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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 Keith Faber, the office also provides financial services to local governments, investigates and prevents fraud in public agencies, and promotes transparency in government.

Public Affairs
Contact: Marc Kovac
press@ohioauditor.gov