What led to GBI investigation for Burke County sheriff

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – The Georgia Bureau of Investigation, GBI, says it’s investigating Burke County Sheriff Alfonzo Williams.

The GBI confirmed this Monday night time.

At this level, we don’t have many particulars in regards to the scope of this investigation.

However this comes after a number of I-TEAM investigations relating to Williams.

Two impartial monetary audits had been accomplished by the accounting agency Lanier, Deal & Proctor from September 2021 by means of July 2022.

The I-TEAM reported on this in October of 2022.

The audit investigated how the sheriff’s workplace spent almost $250,000 of grant cash on turkeys and toys for the group.

These grants had been from the Waynesboro Housing Authority for housing authority property and Georgia Energy for security at Plant Vogtle.

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The audit additionally discovered the sheriff spent greater than$41,000 on eating places, journey, and shops on a county bank card that the county commissioners say they by no means licensed.

“I feel it’s as a result of I’m younger and Black, they usually don’t desire a Black man to be in charge of cash and spending. I hate to equate it to that,” stated Williams on Oct. 17.

Lower than two weeks after we broke down the audit, on Oct. 24, the county was alerted about greater than $53,000 in confiscated belongings or seized monies that has been lacking for six years.

The county began asking questions and sat down with the I-TEAM in March.

“I began asking questions, trying into [it.] I couldn’t discover any deposits that matched that quantity of $53,871.31,” stated County Supervisor Merv Waldrop, on March 27.

Per week after the county began asking questions, the cash was deposited at Southern Financial institution by a deputy in uniform. Though it was the precise amount of cash, the denominations don’t seem to match the quantities on the asset sheet.

“Your purple flags go up, and also you suppose, effectively, what … what’s happening right here? It warrants asking extra questions,” stated Waldrop.

Quick ahead to Feb. 16, the GBI confirms they opened an investigation into irregularities in coaching data with former Waynesboro Police Division Officer Gary Jenkins.

Williams was the teacher for the lessons in query on the Burke County Sheriff’s Workplace.

He put this video on Fb saying he couldn’t bear in mind the date of the category so he put it down because the twenty ninth.

“I agreed to present him the instruction and provides him credit score for the instruction after it was full. I did try this,” stated Williams on Feb. 21.

The sheriff’s telephone report, and GPS present he was not in Waynesboro on the time the coaching supposedly occurred.

After two months and several other requests later, the I-TEAM sat down with Williams on Might 4 to attempt to get some solutions about his spending, coaching data, and the lacking $53,000.

Will Rioux: “The group was asking the place that cash went for six years that randomly confirmed up when questions had been being requested, the place was that cash for six years?”

Sheriff Williams: “Look, each choice that I make relating to any expenditures on this workplace is finished with the utmost integrity in a method that enables me to meet my constitutional obligations. I used to be very accountable in the way in which we deal with our budgetary enterprise. I’m going to proceed to take action.”

Will Rioux: “So, you’ll be able to’t say the place these funds had been, what they had been used for in any respect, or in the event that they had been right here?

Sheriff Williams: “The cash is there. The cash has at all times been there. The cash has by no means been lacking. All of this facade that the cash was lacking and abruptly, it seems, is bulls**t.”

Will Rioux: “Hear, there’s this vital … There’s a vital GBI investigation proper now happening into coaching data. I imply that considerations everybody.”

Sheriff Williams: “Is {that a} budgetary situation?”

Will Rioux: “It’s not, however I haven’t had the possibility to ask you about that.”

Sheriff Williams: “You requested me to come back and discuss budgetary points, and I might respect you being easy.”

Now, the GBI is launching a restricted preliminary inquiry into considerations and allegations relating to the sheriff. Which means it’s the primary investigation to find out if there’s sufficient proof to proceed with a trial or authorized motion.

The county supervisor’s workplace says county commissioners licensed his workplace to show over all proof to the GBI and district lawyer.

Emails between the GBI and the county supervisor’s workplace present on Feb. 10, the GBI and DA met to debate shifting ahead with the investigation.

We’ve reached out to the GBI to see if that is prison in nature or what precisely they’re trying into.

They are saying they can not share any extra data.

We’ve reached out to the Burke County Sheriff’s Workplace for remark, however we have now not heard again.

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