Former Shreveport controller alleges ‘financial improprieties’ by metropolis officials | News

SHREVEPORT, La. — A 9-year city of Shreveport personnel is alleging age and racial discrimination immediately after he was terminated for a selection of problems.

The male phone calls himself a whistleblower and suggests he brought to the awareness of his supervisors irregularities — and even illegalities in the city’s funds and accounting.

That whistleblower is 85-yr-previous Ben Hebert.

He and his lawyer Allison Jones place forth a list of numerous allegations throughout a news meeting Monday afternoon.

Among the them:

• The town fails to comply with set up accounting methods.
• The city unsuccessful to meet up with IRS and state income time constraints.
• The town often did not pay out its credit score cards on time.

Hebert suggests he brought to his supervisor’s focus the mayor was not correctly distributing travel expenses. And that some of what was submitted and what he was staying questioned to do in approving them was illegal beneath condition legislation.

Hebert claimed he was fired when he pointed it out to interim town chief money officer Kasey Brown.

“Many difficulties with the mayor’s vacation price reviews that involve failure to offer itemized receipts for certain expenditures, minor or no description of the purpose or gains derived for the town from the excursion, and other irregularities,” Hebert said.

“That Mr. Brown both authorised these violations of condition regulation or noted them up. We’re not positive at this position. But also that mainly because he was the conclusion-maker for the termination, that he retaliated against my shopper,” Jones said.

Hebert suggests he refused to participate in what he felt were violations of condition legislation. He believes he was also handed in excess of for a advertising for the reason that of his age and his race.

Jones claims she will be filing grievances with the EEOC and the Louisiana Commission on Human Rights.

KTBS reached out to the Shreveport spokeswoman Marquel Sennet for a reaction to Hebert’s allegations. She mentioned no comment can be delivered thanks to pending litigation.

In a assertion produced Monday morning, Jones claimed, “Mr. Hebert has been denied promotions due to his age and race and has continuously refused to participate in and to consistently report money transactions which he thinks are in violation of point out regulation. It is abundantly distinct that the termination of his work was retaliatory for his secured exercise. The termination of Mr. Hebert’s employment in just days of his reporting and refusing to participate in what he believes are fiscal improprieties and shortly subsequent his issues of discrimination makes the termination conclusion very suspicious and should really result in the City Council to question some significant questions of the mayor and the existing interim main financial officer.”

Jones pointed out that Brown, the selection-maker regarding Hebert’s termination, is Perkins’ nominee for the long term posture of main economic officer. The Shreveport City Council is scheduled to look at confirmation of Brown at Tuesday’s conference.

In an open letter to the mayor and Town Council, Hebert has asked for to have Brown’s appointment postponed so the City Council can have adequate time to evaluate and investigate his allegations of doable fiscal improprieties. 

“Mr. Hebert is contacting on the City Council to do the appropriate factor and just take its time and perform because of diligence ahead of inserting Mr. Brown in such an important situation on a everlasting foundation,” Jones mentioned in her assertion.