State Auditor’s Audit Causes Calhoun County Chancery Clerk to Resign
(Jackson, Miss.) State Auditor Stacey Pickering announced today that Calhoun County Chancery Clerk has resigned following an unannounced visit by special agents with the State Auditor’s Office. Agents went in to Calhoun County Chancery Clerk’s Office today and conducted a cash count of the Land Redemption account following an allegation of missing funds.
The State Auditor’s Office received information from its audit division that indicated a possible discrepancy in the Land Redemption account. At the conclusion of the cash count, special agents concluded that there was an undetermined amount of money that was unaccounted for in the account. Chancery Clerk Jess Moore has repaid approximately $12,000 in funds taken from the Chancery Clerk’s office that had not been properly deposited into the Land Redemption account. Moore tendered his resignation to the Calhoun County Board of Supervisors today during an interview with special agents from the State Auditor’s Office. Special agents will immediately begin a full investigation to determine an exact amount of missing funds and loss to the county.
“After the cash count this morning, Chancery Clerk Jess Moore resigned from his position after repaying $12,000 in funds that belonged to the taxpayers of Calhoun County,” said State Auditor Stacey Pickering. “In less than 2 weeks, our office has gone into two counties unannounced to execute a cash count when we suspected wrong doing. Both have resulted in individuals’ removal from office and execution of emergency procedures to ensure taxpayers in both counties were protected. Local governments across Mississippi should be aware that we are looking into other counties and cities where we suspect similar problems may be occurring.”
Elected as Mississippi’s State Auditor in 2007, Stacey Pickering has recovered more than $4 million in embezzled, misspent or misappropriated funds. He is a seventh generation Mississippian from Jones County. Auditor Pickering currently serves on the Domestic Working Group for the Office of the Comptroller General of the United States. He also serves on the Financial Management and Intergovernmental Affairs and Performance Audit Committees for the National Association of State Auditors, Comptrollers and Treasurers and is a member of the National State Auditors Association. Prior to serving as State Auditor, Pickering served as a State Senator from 2004-2007 representing Jones County and is credited for co-authorizing legislation allowing Mississippi to end lawsuit abuse. Throughout his political career, Pickering has made tremendous strides in creating more accountability and transparency in government and continues to promote fiscal responsibility and the need for more efficiency and productivity in government. For more information on Stacey Pickering, visit www.osa.state.ms.us/auditors-bio.htm.
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Magnolia Tribune
