INSPECTOR GENERAL HARRY STOKES WILLINGLY AND KNOWINGLY ATTEMPTS TO DEFRAUD CITY OF MOUNT VERNON TAXPAYERS

EMBATTLED INSPECTOR GENERAL HARRY STOKES

Preventing fraud, waste, and abuse is the role of the Inspector General, duly hired by Mayor Clinton I. Young Jr. Mayor Young said that the Inspector General is a vital part of his administration. He even sued the City Council for trying to abolish the position, a move that costs thousands of dollars to the taxpayers of Mount Vernon.

The Inspector General hired by Mayor Clinton Young does not abide by residency requirements set forth in the City Charter in Mount Vernon. The City Charter mandates that the Inspector General live south of the 287 corridor. Inspector General Harry Stokes lives in Granite Springs, NY, just minutes miles away from the Putnam County border.

Inspector General Harry Stokes now stands accused of the same fraud that he was hired to detect and weed out. In addition to violating residency requirements on a daily basis, Inspector General Harry Stokes attempted to bilk City of Mount Vernon taxpayers out of $1,789.00. This attempted theft of public funds was caught by the sharp eye of Comptroller Maureen Walker and her staff. Comptroller Maureen Walker has since addressed this attempt to defraud City of Mount Vernon taxpayers by Inspector General Harry Stokes.

Here is how the scheme to defraud taxpayers came to light:

• On October 13, 2010, an ordinance was presented to the City Council to request that the Inspector General attend a seminar in New York City from October 11-15. The seminar was on interrogation and investigation techniques. It is quite obvious that the Inspector General is still learning the job on the job and did not possess the basic job requirements when he was hired for this position. The City Council voted against sending the Inspector General for training. 

• On December 8, 2010, Inspector General Harry Stokes submitted an expense report to the Comptroller’s office seeking to be reimbursed $1789.00 for the four day conference that he was not legally authorized to attend.

• On December 20, 2010, Comptroller Maureen Walker sent a letter to Inspector General Harry Stokes informing him that his request for reimbursment was illegitimate. Comptroller Walker also requested that the Inspector General rescind in writing his attempt for an illegitimate reimbursement.

• On January 24, 2010, Comptroller Maureen Walker issued a second letter regarding the Inspector General’s illegitimate request for reimbursement. Comptroller Walker stated “In view of your apparent refusal to withdraw this request, I therefore, conclude that your written request for reimbursement was not an oversight but a deliberate and calculated attempt to obtain money from the City of Mount Vernon that you were not entitled to.” 

The Inspector General hired by Mayor Young was done for the solehttp://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=1048620650416712073 purpose of harassing the political enemies of Mayor Young. As election year is upon us, we are sure to see more attempts of pillaging by Mayor Young and his gang of thieves.

 Inspector General Harry Stokes Attempts to Defraud Taxpayers