Investigation clears Shelby County Sheriff's Office of accusations of theft, fraud, misconduct

SHELBY COUNTY, Ill. (WAND) - The Shelby County Sheriff's Office has been cleared from allegations of theft, fraud, and official misconduct following a review by the Office of the Attorney General, State of Illinois, and Public Integrity Bureau.

The Shelby County State’s Attorney’s Office was formally notified that its review of allegations of fraud, theft, and official misconduct against the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office is complete.

>>Forensic audit raises questions regarding finances in Shelby County

The conclusion is “that the allegations do not constitute a criminal offense and, accordingly, do not support any criminal charges.”

The Illinois Attorney General’s Office was appointed as a special prosecutor to review and, if deemed necessary, prosecute allegations of fraud, theft and official misconduct brought by the Shelby County Treasurer in December of 2019.

The investigation involved alleged theft of funds through the Sheriff’s Office payroll system and an alleged illegal sale of seized firearms.

20/20 Forensic Accounting was brought in by Shelby County to conduct a payroll audit of the Sheriff’s Office from January 2015 through July 2020. During the audit, the firm reviewed payroll records, bank accounts, collective bargaining agreements and bank statements for the county and the Sheriff’s Office.

Auditors interviewed employees of the Sheriff’s Office, the County Clerk’s Office and the Treasurer’s Office. The audit revealed that $326,315 was overpaid to employees and $332,598 was underpaid to employees. The final result of the audit was a net underpayment to employees of $6,283. The audit findings were shared with and reviewed by the Illinois Attorney General’s Office.

All firearms related to this investigation are accounted for and secured within the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office, Shelby County Sheriff Brian McReynolds said.