The Stonecrest City Council gave its city attorney permission to take further steps and continue an investigation into how the city used its pandemic relief funds and whether any crimes were committed.
At Tuesday’s specially called meeting, the council authorized City Attorney Winston Denmark and staff to take all of the actions recommended in a bombshell investigative report released on April 12. Councilwoman Jazzmin Cobble told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution the council isn’t trying to limit Winston’s ability to investigate the allegations of widespread malfeasance and potential kickbacks.
“The item (voted on Tuesday) is written that way so that it would encompass all of the recommendations,” Cobble said. “... We’re giving them blanket permission to go forward and take the actions they see necessary.”
The investigative report suggested several next steps. Those included launching an external audit of the city’s Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act program; voiding improper contracts; calling on law enforcement for further investigation; and attempting to recover some funds.
The internal investigation found strong evidence that city employees had used Stonecrest’s $6.2 million allotment of federal CARES Act funds to enrich themselves and business associates. In the wake of the investigation, eight city employees contracted through private staffing company Jacobs Engineering were fired, and Mayor Jason Lary is facing calls to resign.
Those implicated in the report have declined to comment, denied any wrongdoing or could not be reached. Lary said he wouldn’t resign and has pushed back on the accusations.
Denmark recommended the council demand improperly spent funds be returned to the city or be repaid by Jacobs. The Dallas, Texas-based company is conducting its own investigation into the city’s CARES Act spending and released a statement that called its former employees’ actions “abhorrent.” New Jacobs employees have taken their place.
The council also announced Tuesday they’ve received a supplemental investigative report, which was compiled after the previous investigative report was finished. The AJC has not received the report, but Denmark said in an email to city leaders and media outlets that it concerns “secondary payments requested from and made by grant recipients to third parties affiliated with the city or city officials.”
Cobble said more supplemental reports are likely, adding that council will continue to announce when each one has been completed. However, she said the council won’t discuss the investigation’s specifics publicly.
“We don’t ever intend to discuss in detail anything that comes out of those reports in a public meeting,” Cobble said.
The story so far: Stonecrest received $6.2 million in federal pandemic relief funds from DeKalb County. Questions were raised after the city contracted with a newly formed nonprofit to disburse those funds to small businesses. An internal investigation began, and its results were released April 12, finding widespread mismanagement and improper contracts that resemble a kickback scheme.
What’s next?: The city attorney and Stonecrest staff will begin taking the recommended actions detailed in the investigative report, which includes an external audit of the program and tracing where the money was spent.
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