WATCH: Attorney Questions 'Discrepancies' in Report

Village-hired attorney Scott B. Augustine was before the trustees of the Village of Westhampton Beach on March 7 questioning board members on "discrepancies" in a financial report issued by the village's accounting firm, Satty, Levine & Ciacco.

Augustine, of Bellport, who was hired to oversee the audit in October 2012 with Mayor Conrad Teller casting the lone dissenting vote, stood at the podium to ask why a report he received from the village's auditing firm was three-pages longer than a report that the village trustees received on March 6.

"There were alterations done without my knowledge and done in a last-minute way," said Augustine, insinuating that the report may have been tampered with.

"It puts the report's integrity in question," he said.

The statement was met with criticism from both village attorney Richard Richard T. Haefeli and Mayor Teller.

Haefeli went first: "You are making a criticism of the village's auditors and they are not here. It seems that this should be put off until a time when the auditors can come."

Secondly, Haefeli later stated, the discussion is not one that should take place in public.

"This is an attorney, client relationship, we don't discuss this in front of an audience," he said.

Mayor Teller, also responded to the accusations saying he was the last person to speak to the village's accounting firm, "I don't ask a damn question on the audit other than if there is a red flag or not. I was the last to talk to that guy. If you think I can change and type a report, then you are out of your mind."

Augustine responded that he was not making an accusation and that he was simply, "trying to find out what happened."

The audit has been contentious among trustees since October when village board members began questioning the village's finances after it was learned that an accounting error resulted in the overpayment of $22,000 to 40 employees, which Village Clerk Rebecca Molinaro said has since been corrected.

The state has also examined the village's books and deemed them sound in January, pointing out that measures should only be taken in the village's technology department and bid specs brought up to date.

But, Trustee Patricia DiBenedetto said it is not just about the overpayment of employees or the state's findings — she said there are questions regarding $248,000 in budget transfers to various village departments and hopes that the new report will shed some light.

Editor's Note: The above video was obtained from the Village of Westhampton Beach under a Freedom of Information Law request by Dean Speir and posted to On The Beach blog and YouTube. 

Related Reading:

• Village Extends Services of Financial Auditing Firm in 3-2 Vote
• Op/Ed: Trustees Must Be Mindful of Village Finances
• Village Clerk: New Payroll Schedule Needed to Prevent Errors

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