County Auditor, State’s Attorney present fraud prevention seminar for local government, school district employees

June 20

JOLIET – Will County Auditor Duffy Blackburn and Will County State’s Attorney James W. Glasgow hosted a seminar designed to teach government employees to prevent, recognize and report cases of government fraud.

More than 40 employees from Will County government and local school districts attended the presentation by Mary O’Connor from Sikich LLP, one of the nation’s leading CPA firms. O’Connor discussed common fraud schemes that impact local government and taught those in attendance how to identify and report these incidents. She made her presentation June 13 at the Will County Office Building in downtown Joliet.

O’Connor has more than three decades of experience in investigative accounting and forensic technology. She has been called upon for her expertise in large cases related to the 9/11 attack, and she has conducted countless fraud investigations for both publicly traded and privately held companies as well as for municipal units of government and school districts.

To illustrate her points, O’Connor frequently referenced facts from the case of Rita Crundwell, the disgraced former comptroller in Dixon, IL, who was sentenced to 19-1/2 years in prison for stealing more than $54 million from her municipality over the past two decades.

“Newspapers in recent years have been filled with sensational headlines and stories detailing cases of government fraud like the Dixon case,” Auditor Blackburn said. “Mary O’Connor provided important information that will enable our government employees to protect taxpayer funded resources from those who are intent on exploiting the system for personal benefit.”

State’s Attorney Glasgow said: “The majority of government employees work in the best interest of taxpayers, but it is imperative that supervisors in our local schools and municipalities possess the knowledge to identify instances of theft and fraud when they arise. It’s a pleasure to work with Duffy Blackburn and Mary O’Connor to provide government employees with important information that will help them to prevent another case like Dixon.”

Will County State’s Attorney James Glasgow, Mary O’Connor and Will County Auditor Duffy Blackburn.