Controller Gary DiBileo knows the money a Lackawanna County detective recovered from a vendor who failed to deliver on a prepaid training seminar is barely a ripple in the county's bottom line.
It's how the recovery came about that makes it noteworthy, he said.
Thanks to a tip to the hotline Mr. DiBileo created in the summer to receive information about the suspected fraud, waste and abuse of taxpayer dollars - and some sleuthing by county Detective Nick DeSando - the county got back the $1,050 it paid for the training that never happened.
"While this wasn't a huge dollar amount, it is an example that the hotline works," Mr. DiBileo said.
According to Detective DeSando, it started last summer when juvenile probation officials responded to an ad by Joel Edgreen, who operates J.J. Training Associates in Brookville, for a seminar on bath salts - a synthetic drug. The county paid Mr. Edgreen's $1,050 fee in advance, and the training was set for July 26 at a local hotel.
"Every time it was time to actually show up here for the class, the guy kept having an excuse," the detective said.
After the third cancellation, Mr. Edgreen "just vanished off the face of the Earth," he said.
That is when the hotline was contacted, and Mr. DiBileo referred the matter to the district attorney's office. The case was assigned to Detective DeSando last month.
Detective DeSando said the cellphone number Mr. Edgreen had given county officials was disconnected. With the assistance of other police agencies, Detective DeSando located people who knew Mr. Edgreen, including a former girlfriend, and within a few days traced him to Frostburg, Md.
When he finally got Mr. Edgreen on the phone, Detective DeSando said he put the fear into him.
"I said, 'Lookit, bud, I ain't playing. ... Either I have a check here tomorrow or I'm driving out there with a warrant. It's up to you,'â" Detective DeSando said.
He received two money orders totaling $1,050 the next day by overnight mail, he said.
In response to the incident, Mr. DiBileo sent an email to all county employees advising them to use caution and check references before pre-paying for seminars, guest speakers and similar events.
"We need to double-check to make sure we know who we are dealing with," he said. "We need to be careful about paying anyone except a vendor we know is completely legitimate."
Citizens can leave confidential tips by calling 963-6600 or by visiting the hotline link on the controller's page at the county website, www.lackawannacounty.org.
Contact the writer: dsingleton@timesshamrock.com