The city’s Office of Inspector General has been called in to help determine what’s happened with more than $27,000 of prepaid debit cards that have gone missing.
The office contacted Mayor Lenny Curry’s administration Monday after media reports detailed 507 cards purchased by former Mayor Alvin Brown’s team are unaccounted for.
The next day, Curry asked the inspector general to look into the issue.
Tom Cline, city inspector general, said Wednesday his office had opened an investigation on the matter. He said several interviews have been lined up, but declined further comment.
Sam Mousa, Curry’s chief administrative officer, said he couldn’t comment because the inspector general had taken up the issue.
The missing 507 cards were part of 729 purchased from VyStar Credit Union in October 2013. They were bought as part of city employee recognition program started by the city in 1999.
The remaining 222 cards were properly logged as having been given to employees.
Another 246 cards purchased in November 2014 for almost $25,000 are accounted for.
Both purchases came under Brown, with the cards housed in a safe in the office of his chief financial officer, Ronnie Belton. David Hunt, a spokesman working with the former mayor, said Brown had no comment at this time.
Marsha Oliver, Curry’s spokeswoman, earlier this week said the mayor had not used the program since taking office in July and wasn’t sure what the future of the program would be.
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