Kings County will take a financial hit of nearly $85,000, supervisors were told Tuesday, stemming from a fraudulent transaction.
Director of Finance Jim Erb told the board that the county issued a $894,000 check to unnamed persons posing as a contractor who was employed by the county nearly a year and a half ago. With the help of the Kings County Sheriff's Office, the county was able to recover more than 90 percent of the funds, but would need to cover $84,988 which Erb suggested come from contingencies within the county's budget.
Erb also explained that the county has since implemented procedures to prevent fraudulent incidents from occurring.
"Since this event, we've probably stopped it four to five times, other similar sorts of attacks on us, so our procedures are working," said Erb.
Kings County Sheriff's Sergeant Josh Speer, who helped recover some of the money from the fraudulent entity, said that the crime, called a business compromised email scam, happens all the time and said that the entity that stole from the county was experienced and had stolen from other counties as well.
"These individuals that we were able to find through this process were able to target seven different entities, three of which were other municipalities," said Speer.
The initial loss to the county was $893,754. Of that, $802,921 was recovered. Use of the contingency funds to make up the difference was approved unanimously by the board.
The board also quickly and unanimously approved a letter of support for legislation to build a veterans home in Monterey County. Scott Holwell, a representative of the Veterans Service Office, went before the board to explain the need for veterans home services, and that without them the risk of veterans becoming homeless increases.
"Veterans need stable, affordable housing and care as they transition into the later stages of life, as we well know," said Holwell. "Additionally, these housings should be paired with appropriate services that the men and women who have selflessly served our country deserve."
With eight veterans service homes in the state, Holwell said the addition of a ninth home would give some relief to the extensive need. Homes that offer skilled nursing and memory care — the two biggest need groups among older veterans — have waitlists that extend for years. With the letter of support from the board, Holwell said the home in Monterey County would bring much needed services and resources.
In other business, the board approved a notice of completion for the Kings County Roadway Improvement Project. From September to December, 17 miles of county roads received improvements.
Also Tuesday, board Chairman Richard Valle signed a letter requesting that the California Department of Fish and Wildlife extend their comment period to Feb. 5 regarding which bee species to add to the endangered species list. The item was presented to Vice Chairman Doug Verboon, who requested the consideration.
"I think that bees are very important to the stability of our environment, especially when it comes to almonds and cotton, even alfalfa," said Verboon. "We need the bees to pollinate, so when we put them on the endangered species list then we will be controlling our ability to grow and pollinate our crops."
The next Kings County Board of Supervisors meeting will be Jan. 24, beginning at 9 a.m.
