Audit finds Atlanta Police Department accounts worth millions - Atlanta News, Weather, Traffic, and Sports | FOX 5

An audit has found that the Atlanta Police Department has control over two "off the books" accounts worth millions of dollars.

The APD acts as custodian for certain funds, including evidence cash or unclaimed money.

Atlanta City Councilmember Felicia Moore said she's unhappy with the way the APD is handling the money.

"This is public government. You can't have accounts off the books. It's not legal to have accounts off the books," said Moore.

Auditor Leslie Ward report states that police managers failed to do what they had been instructed to do years ago.

"We discovered that the police department continues to control two accounts that are recorded on the city's books," Ward said in the report.

The larger account is the prisoner and evidence account totaling $2.9 million. The second account is unclaimed cash. According to the finance ledger at Atlanta City Hall, that account is supposed to amount to $9,492. However, the auditor found $1.3 million in the account at Wells Fargo Bank.

"I have a fiduciary responsibility to the city, so I need to make sure I'm getting correct information," said Moore.

Ward's report notes that "strong internal controls for cash collection are necessary to prevent misappropriation of city funds; cash should be promptly deposited into a city of Atlanta authorized bank account. Failure to follow established policies increases the risk of fraud."

Jim Beard, the city's new chief financial officer, told FOX 5's Morse Diggs said that he does not agree with the way the accounts are being handled. Beard said he would meet with the police chief and the mayor's chief officer. He promised a resolution within 60 to 90 days.