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Texas D.A. Office Investigates Toner Cartridge Crime (Video)
DA investigating former Lubbock ISD contract employees
click on link below to see video
LUBBOCK, TX – Nearly half a million dollars, that’s how much Lubbock ISD says they were duped out of by two former contract workers.The Lubbock County District Attorney’s office is investigating and will decide whether criminal charges will be filed.Sodexo is contracted by LISD for grounds keeping, maintenance, and custodial services.They’ve been working with the district for more than two decades, and LISD says they’ve had a good working relationship.On Tuesday we learned that there have been two separate allegations of inappropriate conduct by former Sodexo employees since 2003.Office supplies and electronics like cameras, printers, and ink cartridges are all products LISD Superintendent Dr. Karen Garza says certain Sodexo employees could purchase with district money."Sodexo is responsible for our grounds so when a weed eater goes out, they’re able to purchase a weed eater," she explained.Lubbock ISD says starting in 2003, a married couple working for Sodexo would buy several different items and the bill would come to LISD.The products never made it.
LISD says the couple sold them on eBay instead.
"They actually signed confessions. We were able to get full restitution for all of that it equaled about $446,000 since 2003," Garza said.The incident came to the district’s attention last year when Dr. Garza moved an LISD employee to monitor business transactions with Sodexo since the district pays them almost 15 million a year for their work."She started asking for paperwork from them and noticed transactions that were questionable and that started all of this," said Garza.The LISD employee discovered that a different Sodexo employee, who no longer works for the company, used his authority to contract jobs and projects to another company that he had partial ownership in.Garza said the case was sent to the District Attorney’s office but it was determined that there was no criminal wrongdoing. The district and Sodexo felt the actions were inappropriate.
Sodexo then launched an investigation and discovered the suspicious transactions the couple is accused of."Every penny associated with the fraud was taken care of by the company and an additional amount, well over $1 million was paid to the school district just to make it right. I think they want to continue the relationship," Garza said.
None of the three work for Sodexo anymore, and LISD says the company is cooperating fully.LISD is opening up bids for the services Sodexo provided a year early- this January, but Sodexo will be allowed to apply just like any other business.The district attorney’s office continues to investigate but no criminal charges have been filed.We reached out to the couple accused for a comment but haven’t heard back.
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