Eau Claire County has created an ethics and fraud hotline for employees and citizens one year after a county treasurer and assistant were charged with embezzling more than $600,000.
In May 2015, longtime Eau Claire County treasurer Larry Lokken and his deputy Kay Onarheim were charged with stealing $625,000. The suspected amount has since grown to $1.3 million. To prevent future crimes the Eau Claire County Board of Supervisors approved the creation of a an Ethics and Fraud Anonymous Hotline.
For Eau Claire County administrator Kathryn Schauf, it’s a cost effective way to spot crimes.
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“One of the things we learned is that 50% of all fraud cases are actually caught because of fraud hotlines. So, with that kind of efficacy it’s one of those easy solutions that would be almost foolish to leave on the table,” said Schauf.
County employees will also get training on how to spot embezzlement and other crimes in office. Schauf said the county is working to regain the trust of taxpayers.
“From the standpoint of our due diligence and what we’re doing now we’re demonstrating through our actions to the community that they can trust county government to keep track of and monitor these types of things by putting in place known best practices,” she said.
Former treasurer Lokken was sentenced to nine and a half years in prison while Onerheim received a 13-year prison sentence. Both cases have been appealed.
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