FBI inquires about Fulton IT Audit
The FBI has requested information about an audit that found mismanagement and other problems in the Fulton County Information Technology Department.
County Auditor Anthony Nicks says an FBI agent recently contacted him, seeking a copy of the audit and asking questions about it. Nicks said he provided the agent a copy of the audit on Jan. 22.
The December audit found poor oversight of IT contracts worth millions of dollars, plus possible violations of ethics and procurement policies. The investigation is continuing.
The FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s Office did not respond to requests for comment. Channel 2 Action News confirmed the agent who requested the audit is a member of the FBI’s public corruption squad.
Fulton County Commissioner Liz Hausmann said the possibility of an FBI investigation underscores the seriousness of the audit findings.
“It was very troubling,” she said. “If it needs to be investigated, so be it.”
The audit was prompted by complaints from former IT Director Maurice Ficklin. In a recent interview with the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Ficklin said he discovered widespread waste and possible corruption when he took the job last summer. He was fired in October, and Ficklin believes he was punished for blowing the whistle on dubious spending.
Many of the issues he raised were later confirmed by the audit. Among other things, it found:
- The IT Department paid vendors $14.6 million in advance of services rendered, though county policies require payment only after work is completed.
- The department lacked procedures to adequately monitor contracts, making it impossible to tell whether the vendors were doing the work they were paid to do.
- The department didn't maintain attendance records for some contracted employees and could not verify they worked the required hours.
- An assistant IT director supervised a contract employee who was his former business partner, creating a conflict of interest.
- A former employee went to work for one contractor three months after retiring, though county ethics policies require employees to wait at least a year before participating in a county contract.
The IT Department has disputed some of the findings, but has pledged to hire an outside firm to assess its operations.
About the Author
David Wickert writes about the state budget, finance and voting issues. Previously, he covered local government and politics in Gwinnett and Fulton counties. Before moving to Atlanta, he worked at newspapers in Illinois, Tennessee, Virginia and Washington.
