TRUMBULL COUNTY Prosecutor can't verify receipt, need of supplies

Prosecutor Dennis Watkins said his office is prepared to defend the county if the companies choose to sue.
By PEGGY SINKOVICH
and STEPHEN SIFF
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
WARREN --The Trumbull County prosecutor has been unable to verify the "receipt of and reasonableness" of more than $3,000 worth of cleaning supplies ordered by the county maintenance department just before commissioners took away the department's checkbook.
Prosecutor Dennis Watkins stopped payment on all outstanding bills from six maintenance department suppliers Sept. 25 soon after his investigation of maintenance department purchasing began.
After reviewing written information about the purchases, and after a complete inventory, Watkins has determined that the bills should not be paid.
His advice
Last week, he advised the county auditor not to pay outstanding bills from Lid Chem, State Chemical Manufacturing and Tri-County Supplies totaling $3,205.
"This office is unable to verify both the receipt of and reasonableness of the ... items invoiced," he wrote.
The prosecutor's office is prepared to defend the county if the companies choose to sue, he wrote.
In previous letters to commissioners, Watkins expressed shock at the volume of items purchased by the maintenance department and the prices the department paid.
Watkins began reviewing the matter after a series of Vindicator stories over the past four months detailed spiraling spending at the maintenance department and supply purchases several times larger than in neighboring counties.
For example, the county spent more than $17,000 on air freshener in the first eight months of 2002, and $4,200 on bug spray, despite having an exterminator who makes regular visits.
Two of the companies with outstanding bills, Lid Chem and Tri-County Supplies, have unlisted telephone numbers and appear to operate out of the same post office box in Girard.
Atty. J. Gerald Ingram, who represents the owner of Lid Chem and Tri-County Supplies, and officials at State Chemical could not be reached.
Since the prosecutor's investigation has begun, county commissioners have taken purchasing authority away from the maintenance department and started using the state purchasing program for all the department's needs.
Has stopped purchases
The prosecutor also put a hold on purchases from several vendors which have no outstanding bills: Central Service and Supply, Kinzua Environmental Inc., Envirochemical Inc., Medco and Medco Inc., and Results Inc.
Medco and Results both do business out of the same address, 3666 Mahoning Ave., Austintown. Neither has done any work for the county in several years. Prosecutors declined to say why the county is no longer doing business with the companies.
Most of the companies that did business with the maintenance department did not go through the formal bidding process, county officials said.
sinkovich@vindy.com
siff@vindy.com