DES MOINES (AP) — A state investigation has uncovered two Roosevelt High School bank accounts with $1.8 million in deposits that wrongly operated outside of the district’s oversight.
The audit released Friday found hundreds of thousands of dollars of improper and undocumented spending that raised questions about whether donations, fundraising proceeds and player contributions were properly used at the Des Moines school.
The report said former girls’ basketball coach Chris Cundiff deposited more than $19,000 into a bank account he controlled. Cundiff then transferred some of the money into his personal bank account and purchased gifts for athletes and coaches, which are not allowed, according to the report. A phone number for Cundiff could not be found Saturday.
Cundiff resigned in June 2015, after the district’s internal auditors began investigating.
A second account was opened by a booster club, but run by Roosevelt’s activities department, which is not allowed under district policy, the audit said. It included $325,000 in payments to coaches and instructors that were not run through district payroll, so taxes and withholdings were not deducted.
Undocumented spending was also found, including about $45,100 labeled “banquet,” about $44,600 paid to clothing and uniform vendors and about $103,800 described as payments to camps, clinics or sports tournaments. The lack of documentation makes it unclear if expenses were properly represented, or how they were used, the audit said.
Between the two accounts, auditors found more than $643,000 of expenses unsupported by the proper paperwork or that were improperly spent.
The auditor’s report was forwarded to the Polk County Attorney, the state Attorney General and the Division of Criminal Investigation, which will review and decide whether criminal charges are warranted.
“It is a reminder to anybody in a government entity, to make sure all proceeds have been deposited correctly, so that ... taxpayer money is handled appropriately,” said State Auditor Mary Mosiman.