Graphic by Samantha Lopez | Mercury Staff.
Former
UTD staff member Linda Heard made her first court appearance on March 29 after
being indicted on a felony theft charge earlier this year. Heard is accused of
stealing $130,000 from the university.
According an expenditures
investigation report from the Office of Audit and Consulting Services dated
Feb. 9, 2018, Internal Audit investigators reviewed Heard’s purchases using
department funds from September 2012 to December 2017. The report lists 55 items
worth a total of nearly $22,000 that appear to be personal purchases. While 45
of the items were located and being used for UTD business according to Heard,
the report noted that some of the purchases “did not appear to be the best use
of university funds.”
The expenditure
investigation report was shared with UTD officials by Chief Audit Executive
Toni Stephens. The report states the investigation began after allegations were
made to a chemistry department employee that Heard was using university funds
for personal use.
“When we do audits when we
look at things at the university, sometimes things come to our attention,”
Stephens said. “It was not an outside tip: It was something that an auditor
within our Internal Audit office found.”
Stephens said she could not
comment on details of the case as the police investigation is ongoing. The
report details two meetings between Heard and Internal Audit from Dec. 11-12,
2017. During the first meeting, Heard said 21 of the items were at her personal
residence or “on campus somewhere.” The following day during a second meeting,
10 items remained unaccounted for, with Heard stating they were lost, damaged,
unable to be located or she didn’t recall purchasing them, according to the
report.
Department
Head for the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry Ken Balkus declined an
interview but said in an email that the department was shocked and disappointed
after the discovery and that Heard’s future depends on the legal system.
According to the One Card
Program User Guide, employees are not allowed to use department funds for
personal expenditures or to purchase controlled assets without pre-approval.
Controlled assets include cameras, cellphones, computers and tablets, among
other items. Additionally, purchases made with the cards are meant to be
identified through account codes to categorize purchases.
Among the 10 items
unaccounted for in the report were Apple AirPods, an iPad, a 7-speed bike, a
27-inch Apple Thunderbolt display and other items totaling over $2,000. The report
notes that of the 45 items that were accounted for, some were not properly
reviewed or categorized based on account codes.
The report closes with recommendations to improve
the review process and documentation for purchases, as well as improving the
accuracy of account codes. Vice President of Budget and Finance Terry Pankratz
confirmed these changes were being made in an email statement to The Mercury.
“There have been several changes made to improve our
financial controls around purchasing cards,” Pankratz said. “Some of these
include establishing mandatory annual training, consistent and stringent review
of all purchasing activity and more levels of approval for purchases. These
enhanced actions are aimed at further reducing the possibility of inappropriate
expenditures.”
Heard is due back in court on April 26 where she faces a
minimum of two years and a maximum of 20 if found guilty. Several members of
the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry as well as university officials
declined or did not respond to requests for comment. Heard’s attorney, Sean
Bejuk, declined to comment. A media representative for District Attorney Greg
Willis did not respond to requests for comment.