Harris County Treasurer Orlando Sanchez said District Attorney Kim Ogg‘s call for an independent financial audit of his office is out of line because he said there are already such audits underway.
"Not one red cent of county money was ever used and it's not been alleged that it was used and, in fact, we are routinely audited by the auditor's office," said Sanchez.
Authorities arrested Harris County Assistant Treasurer Greg Lueb last week for stealing some $30,000 from a credit union account through check fraud.
Sanchez also criticized Ogg’s representation of crimes, calling them ‘alarmist’.
"The District Attorney created the impression there was public money involved in this nefarious activity one of my employees was involved in," said Sanchez.
In a statement, Ogg defended her call for an audit, saying Lueb had access to agency funds and a desire to steal.
“County leaders are obligated to protect taxpayer money; it is our job to be vigilant and perform our due diligence,” said Ogg.
“That can be done by taking a look at other accounts to make sure all money is accounted for and once that is done, then we can ensure taxpayers their money is indeed safe.”
Sanchez fired Lueb as soon as he found out about the investigation – a day before Lueb’s arrest last Thursday.
Sanchez said he wished either the District Attorney or the Sheriff had notified him about ongoing investigations of Lueb to take action sooner.