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Warren County treasurer asks board to validate sheriff’s statements about ACH fraud
Summary
Warren County Treasurer Christine Norbut told the Board of Supervisors she has documentary and bank evidence that contradicts statements by the Warren County Sheriff’s Office about a December ACH fraud and asked the board to authorize independent forensic, legal and accounting validation of the sheriff’s statements.
Christine Norbut, Warren County treasurer, told the Board of Supervisors on June 18 that she has documentation and bank communications that contradict statements made publicly by the Warren County Sheriff’s Office about a December ACH fraud.
Norbut urged the board to commission independent forensic, legal and accounting experts to corroborate the record. “Arrow Bank advised the treasurer's office that the transactions appeared fraudulent,” Norbut said, and she added the treasurer’s office “nonetheless approved them.” She told the board Arrow Bank did not state the transactions were definitively fraudulent and disputed the sheriff’s characterization of bank communications and the county’s ACH threshold amount.
Why it matters: Norbut framed the request as a governance and transparency issue. She said the county’s documented informal ACH procedures — last updated in 2017 — and the bank communications should be independently examined so supervisors and taxpayers can make decisions based on verified facts rather than conflicting public statements.
The board did not take an immediate formal vote during public comment. Norbut said she has asked the county to pay for independent experts and that she has shared her bank communications with counsel; she also said Arrow Bank declined to provide a written confirmation directly to her because the matter had been referred to attorneys. During a later public-comment period she reiterated that she wants the sheriff’s public assertions independently validated and said the county’s retained forensic and accounting teams (listed in the meeting record as Bond, Schoeneck, King & Fazz) have been engaged to review relevant records.
Board members and members of the public asked for timing on related audits and reports. County staff indicated additional information from other reports would be available in the coming weeks but did not provide a definitive timetable.
The meeting record shows Norbut spoke during the public-comment segment and again during the second public-comment period to press for verification. The hearing produced no immediate vote or formal direction recorded in the meeting minutes to authorize a new independent engagement; Norbut said she had already requested the county pay for independent validation and that counsel had been involved in securing bank records.
