Canton investigates if retiree workers overpaid

CANTON, Ohio (AP) — The FBI is helping the city look into possible irregularities involving some Canton workers who retired but went back on the payroll and may have been overcompensated over several years, city officials said.

While a mistake may have been at the heart of the matter, it’s being treated as a criminal investigation, the mayor’s office said.

Retired city employees are allowed by state law to return to work while collecting their pension, The Repository of Canton reported. Investigators want to know if the affected retirees should have received the pay and benefits of a new hire upon their return and received too much money, vacation and sick time instead.

Rules of the Public Employees Retirement System apparently have been followed by the city, but investigators want to determine whether the city’s handling of the cases in question violated union contracts, city ordinances or other rules, the newspaper reported.