TAXPAYER FLEECING, NEPOTISM, SEX SCANDALS ALLEGED …
Whistleblowers are alleging a veritable cornucopia of corruption at the S.C. Vocational Rehabilitation Department (SCVRD) – a state agency that ostensibly exists to help disabled residents secure “competitive employment.”
The agency – managed by a panel of gubernatorial appointments who are given seven-year terms – has a budget of $166.8 million for the fiscal year that began in July.
That’s up modestly from $158.4 million the previous year.
Two slots on its seven member board are currently vacant – further evidence of S.C. governor Nikki Haley‘s inability to effectively manage the agencies under her direct supervision.
“This is another agency (Haley) has let disintegrate into corruption and chaos,” one whistleblower told us.
How bad have things gotten at SCVRD? According to our sources, the agency is rife with scandal – most notably the misappropriation of taxpayer money through questionable “outsourcing” contracts.
“VR is laundering taxpayer money,” one whistleblower told us.
Kickbacks to several current and former agency leaders have been also alleged as part of this “laundering” scam, with one former commissioner reportedly getting a check in the amount of $8,000 per month.
In addition to the alleged taxpayer fleecing, we have also been informed of numerous instances of nepotism at the agency – including several positions awarded to relatives of commissioners and other prominent Palmetto politicos.
Additionally, benefits have reportedly been doled out improperly to individuals with political connections – meaning those who were in line to receive these benefits didn’t get them.
Not only that, there are said to be multiple sex scandals teeming within the agency – including one involving a well-placed executive who has allegedly rewarded his mistress with multiple pay raises.
It’s a mess, in other words …
“These people need some accountability,” one of our whistleblowers noted.
Based on what we’ve heard, that sounds like an understatement.
FITS has turned over the information we obtained to the S.C. House Legislative Oversight committee in the hopes its chairman – S.C. Rep. Weston Newton – can get to the bottom of these allegations. We are also providing the information to the S.C. State Law Enforcement Division (SLED) in the event there is any criminal conduct that needs to be referred for prosecution.
Stay tuned …
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