Horizon School Division office. (file photo/northeastNOW Staff)

By Jaryn Vecchio

Stolen Funds

‘This could have gone on for years’: Horizon School Division fires employee accused of stealing funds

Oct 11, 2022 | 11:58 AM

The Horizon School Division is still looking to retrieve funds allegedly stolen by a former employee.

Administrators for the the division, which oversees communities in the Humboldt, Wakaw, and St. Brieux areas, started an audit after noticing roughly $4,600 wasn’t deposited to division bank accounts between June and August 2022.

They were able to confirm they were missing the funds and that they were taken. They have since reached out to RCMP and fired the employee accused of misappropriating the funds.

Kevin Garinger, the director of education, told northeastNOW their current goal is getting the money back, however, this will be a tough ask.

“The likelihood of that happening is very little,” he said.

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The division has a process in place where staff who are required to handle finances, like principals and secretaries, are trained to spot situations like this.

Garinger believes if this procedure wasn’t in place, the division potentially could have lost a lot more than just $4,600.

“I believe without strong process; this could have gone on for years,” he said.

The division is also in the process of getting a new system in place to operate its financial services and become completely cashless. A request for proposal (RFP) is currently out.

“It’s something that can be an extreme challenge in systems and it’s why we’re wanting to move away from it,” Garinger said.

Meanwhile, the employee in question was reportedly new, working for the division for less than six months. Grainger noted they didn’t work in the division office.

northeastNOW reached out to the RCMP but did not receive a response at this time.

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Jaryn.Vecchio@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @northeastNOW_SK