PILOT MOUNTAIN, N.C. (WGHP) — The mayor of Pilot Mountain is shedding light on alleged financial impropriety committed by Michael Boaz, the town’s since-suspended finance officer and town manager.
Boaz was placed on leave in October after “discrepancies” were found in the town’s finances, which had already been under scrutiny following an investigation into allegations of corrupt police activity. Assistant town manager Holly Utt was named the acting town manager.
On Thursday, Mayor Evan Cockerham posted on his Facebook new details that arose from a board meeting where they discussed issues with Boaz.
“Through both good times and difficult ones, it has truly been a blessing to serve this community as an elected official for the past eight years,” Cockerham wrote to start. “Unfortunately, it now appears that our town manager and finance officer [Boaz] spent money without the Board’s knowledge or approval. It also appears that, on multiple occasions, the Board was presented with information that was inaccurate, affecting our ability to make informed decisions.”
He said that since placing Boaz on leave, they discovered that these alleged actions impacted funds that had been meant for the Pilot Mountain Rescue Squad, the tourism board and a “Love the Library Tea” fundraiser.
“I know that many of you feel sad, angry and betrayed by these actions; every one of us here shares that feeling, and we are committed to restoring the funds that have been misused,” the mayor said.
Cockerham said that, before his tenure as mayor, the council had given Boaz a combined role of town manager and finance officer.
The town manager oversees daily operations of the town and acts as the chief of staff for the town’s board, which establishes the policies and oversees the manager’s performance.
“In this model, elected officials must place a significant amount of trust in staff,” Cockerham said.
In addition to that trust, the town relies on external safeguards like the local government commission, the state auditor and an annual third-party audit, but Cockerham says “these institutions failed to alert us to financial discrepancies and, thus far, have offered only limited guidance.”
“Since these agencies did not intervene, we took action,” Cockerham said, explaining that he brought in former State Auditor Beth Wood to conduct a comprehensive examination to determine what happened.
Wood’s report is expected later this week or early next week, and her findings will be shared with relevant state agencies and the community.
“We have also initiated contact with our insurers to file a claim under the town’s bond policy for the finance officer, which we expect will provide a payout to help restore our financial standing,” Cockerham wrote. “Additionally, we have identified potential income sources, implemented a hiring freeze and directed each department to streamline operations and reduce costs where possible.
“It is essential that we make this right, it will take time but I assure you that we will.”
Police corruption investigation
Earlier in 2024, an internal investigation, spurred by an anonymous tip from an officer with the PMPD and conducted by Richardson and Davis Investigative Consulting Group, found evidence that former Pilot Mountain Police Chief Darryl Bottoms and his successor, former Police Chief Robbie Jackson, scheduled officers to work on-duty assignments with the town while simultaneously working off-duty assignments at car shows.
Bottoms and Jackson would report to event organizers that certain members of the police department would work events off-duty and instruct different officers to work in their place. Both chiefs would collect checks to be cashed and paid to themselves and the officers who did work. Both chiefs, allegedly, used misleading scheduling practices for these car shows to avoid reporting off-duty income to the IRS.
Additionally, Redman says Jackson used his position to help others buy firearms. He falsely signed a statement with the U.S. Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms Agency saying that the firearms would be used exclusively by the Pilot Mountain police department, but the firearms were not intended for departmental use.
