City of St. Martinville

Approximately $1,200 in utility funds were taken by an employee of the City of St. Martinville during the fiscal year that ended June 30, 2014, according to a report released Monday by Legislative Auditor Daryl Purpera.

The audit was performed for the state auditor by the Breaux Bridge accounting firm of Kolder, Champagne, Slaven and Co. The report does not name the employee who allegedly took the money.

“The employee paid restitution to the city for the amount that was misappropriated,” the report said. “Because the employee paid restitution and because a lie detector test was administered to verify that the misappropriation was an isolated incident, no legal charges were filed.”

Auditors said the employee still works for the city but does not have access to cash or other funds.

The report pointed out that St. Martinville did not have adequate controls in place in order to ensure the proper handling of collections of certain revenues in the utility fund.