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Inspector General Finds $40,000 Missing From Lancaster Prison

The Ohio Inspector General's office says an employee at the Southeastern Correctional Complex in Lancaster stole over 22,000 from the prison last year.  

Deputy inspector Carl Enslen says the IG's office was called in after prison officials confronted Steven Davenport over a $500 check on a state account that he had drawn up and cashed.

 
CE: And we concentrated on activities that he was involved with, and as it turned out, there were a number of checks that totaled over $20,000 that he had actually drawn - in his capacity as cashier - and that he had cashed at teller windows in the bank.  So that was the portion that we were able to determine where he had handled... There were other activities that he was involved in at the correctional institute where he was managing or helping manage several different types of activities involving a small cafe that was there that was for the employees of the institute and some other areas where there was cash handling of receipts, and that totaled another $20,000.  and that remains unaccounted.
 
Enslen says the investigation determined that there were insufficient procedures in place to properly account for cash transactions in place.  But he also says prison officials were slow to act on suspicions over missing money.  The IG's report has been turned over to the Fairfield County prosecuting attorney for further action.
 

A native of Chicago, naturalized citizen of Cincinnati and resident of Columbus, Alison attended Earlham College and the Ohio State University. She has equal passion for Midwest history, hockey and Slavic poetry.
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