Another example of public sector misbehavior on the public dole has come to light. From WBEN:
"The former director of the state prison system’s food operations – who cheated state taxpayers out of a half million dollars using falsified travel and attendance documents – pleaded guilty to second degree grand larceny in Oneida County Court. Howard Dean, director of the Department of Corrections’ Food Production Center (DOCS) was paid huge sums for falsified travel reimbursement claims and fraudulently filed attendance records. He also failed to indicate he took every Friday off for 17 years. The discovery was made by New York State auditors and investigators, together with the State Inspector General’s office.
“There is never a good time to rip off the taxpayers,” said New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli. “But taking every Friday off for 17 years – and getting paid for it – is particularly galling, especially at a time when so many New Yorkers are out of work. Mr. Dean didn’t show up for work, but he’ll have to show up for jail, and there are no Fridays off in prison. His sentence should send a message to any public official with sticky fingers: watch out – we will find you.”
As part of a plea deal, Dean is expected to be sentenced to 6 months in jail and five years probation. The probationary period begins at the time of sentencing and runs concurrent to the jail time. Dean has also agreed to pay $50,000 restitution at arraignment and an additional $50,000 restitution during the 5-year probationary period."
The sentence is a slap on the wrist. However, I'm all for making these people reimburse the taxpayers for the coin they pilfered. Hopefully all state governments have a task force in place to find and root out the bad apples.
Background Reading:
WBEN: State Worker Who Took Fridays Off For 17 Years Has Day In Court
