Ex-Tangipahoa Landfill Manager May Have Taken More Than $18,000 from Scrap Metal Sales

An investigative audit has found that the former Tangipahoa Parish Landfill manager appears to have directed $18,533 from the sale of Parish-owned scrap to himself rather than the Parish and allowed a contractor to dispose of roofing debris without paying the required fees, the Legislative Auditor said in a report released today.
Between April 2013 and April 2016, the Parish sold all of its scrap metal to Hwy. 16 Scrap Yard. The owner of the scrap yard told auditors that on several occasions he paid the landfill manager directly with cash or with a personal check. Checks totaling $18,533 were paid to the landfill manager. The scrap yard had no records to verify any cash payments.
Auditors also found that the landfill manager allowed a contractor to dispose of roofing debris without paying a fee to the Parish. Parish records showed that $49,330 should have been collected for the debris, but was not. The contractor told auditors that he paid the landfill manager $50 cash for each trip instead of the required per ton fee. According to Parish records, the contractor made 331 trips to the landfill between 2013 and 2016, which could potentially total $16,550 in cash payments to the landfill manager instead of paying the Parish $49,330.