STEVENS POINT, Wis. (WSAU) — District Attorney Louis Molepske Jr. yesterday said he is requesting a special prosecutor to look into misconduct allegations at the Treasurer’s office. Treasurer Stephanie Stokes is not commenting, and neither are other county officials since the investigation is still open.
The investigation began in late August or early September. Deputy Treasurer Amy Townsend resigned September 3rd, but it’s not clear if her resignation is related to the investigation.
This started with a less-than-favorable audit from the Baker Tilly accounting firm that was highly critical of Stokes and her staff for their methods, lack of policies, and lack of accounting and finance knowledge. Corporation Council Mike McKenna then looked into the allegations, and on September 10th, he requested the Stevens Point Police Department conduct an investigation. Molepske received the case from the Stevens Point Police Department October 6th. He would only say the numbers don’t add up.
Molepske says he would like a special prosecutor to review the facts, since everyone in the courthouse knows each other, and he wants to avoid the appearance of impropriety. Molepske did tell a Stevens Point City Times reporter Monday the allegations against persons involved are financial in nature, and that the police department didn’t refer specific charges, but they want a more detailed review to see if any laws were broken.
A recent audit found several deficiencies, including access concerns with the county’s checking account and wire transfers, and a lack of overall accounting and finance knowledge. County officials at every level are withholding comment on the investigation. The special prosecutor has not been selected yet.
Stephanie Stokes has been the County Treasurer since 2004.
(Stevens Point City Times reporter Brandi Makuski contributed to this report.)
