A report on the thet of $181,000 in unemployment compensation funds by a high-ranking administrator has been released.
The 20-page report, sent to the leaders of the four House and Senate caucuses, outlines the actions taken in the case, which was not publicly disclosed until WHYY learned about it and contacted the department.
The suspect in the case, Michael Brittingham, 37, took his own life after the department detected the theft and issued a suspension. The criminal cases then became a civil matter, with the state working to recoup the funds through the individual's estate, according to the report.
The report did reveal that the individual was a department administrator and would have been responsible for dealing with weaknesses in the accounting and reporting system.
"With the benefit of hindsight, the former UI Administrator, as a leader within UI, was provided a high level of autonomy and trust as part of his job responsibilities, which included day-to-day operations, oversight, and continuous improvement of ECO. We cannot confidently assess the degree to which the former UI Administrator contributed to the lack of progress or inhibited efforts toward resolving known accounting and control deficiencies.
A report from the state Auditor described the department's systems as "unauditable." However, the office was aware of the theft loss, with its opinion not related to the embezzlement matter.
The report also took note of efforts to make a forensic audit that involved three different accounting firms.
The Delaware Coalition for Open Government earlier made a request to the U.S. Labor Department for a probe into the Delaware unemployment compensation system. The coalition sent a copy of the report to the media. Republican legislators called for hearings on the theft.
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Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
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Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article.