The Monroe County Sheriff鈥檚 Office confirmed Thursday that they have an open investigation into the cash handling practices of the county鈥檚 Parks and Beaches Department.
The move comes on the heels of an conducted by the Clerk of Circuit Court and Comptroller鈥檚 office released last week.
The audit stemmed from a 2022 memo issued to the Parks and Beaches Director over their process for collecting admission fees at Harry Harris Park in Tavernier.
While Comptroller Kevin Madock writes in a letter to county commissioners that many of the suggested changes at Harry Harris Park were implemented, auditors found 鈥渢roubling and material deficiencies鈥� in the department鈥檚 cash management practices in two other areas 鈥� the School Break Camp program and county property rentals.
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鈥淭hese two programs lacked management controls and oversight,鈥� Madock writes.
The Parks and Beaches Department was created in 2019, and they manage several programs including three that handle cash, checks and credit/debit card payments.
The School Break Camp began in 2023 and runs youth camp programming during summer, spring and winter school breaks. But auditors allege that during the period from the camp program鈥檚 establishment to April of this year, the department didn鈥檛 properly track camper fees and therefore couldn鈥檛 confirm that all campers who attended the program paid or that fees were properly deposited to the County鈥檚 bank account.
鈥淭he department鈥檚 inaccurate record keeping, unreliable and inconsistent documentation, and lack of controls and management oversight made it impossible for us to properly reconcile and account for the program鈥檚 receipts,鈥� auditors report.
A review of the department鈥檚 county property rental process reveals alleged deficiencies including that the department does not assess the required state sales tax onto the total fee for renting out county property like bridges, parks, and county meeting rooms.
Auditors also allege that department staff have waived fees 鈥渨ithout the required approvals as set forth by County policy,鈥� which would require approval from the County Administrator. They also reviewed invoices that didn鈥檛 include key information like the date the invoice was created, date of the event, a unique sequential number and payment terms.
The Sheriff鈥檚 Office investigation is still ongoing.
