On Monday, May 7, the Board of Directors of the Middleburg Volunteer Fire Department accused its former Treasurer, Paul Draisey, of embezzlement.

In a prepared statement Counsel for the Board, Middleburg Attorney Ed MacMahon, charged that Draisey, over the last three years, had "embezzled a substantial amount of funds from the Department." The amount in question, MacMahon said, "... approaches $500,000.

According to MacMahon, once the evidence that funds were missing "came to light, Mr. Draisey was "immediately confronted and the facts related to the embezzlement were immediately reported to the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office Criminal Investigation Unit.

"The Board," he said, "deeply regrets that this incident has taken place and is taking every step available to see that it never happens again. This violation of the public trust is completely unacceptable to the Board."

Due to "the ongoing criminal investigation" of the charges, MacMahon concluded, he was "not able to go into more detail," saying only that the "Middleburg Fire Department has been, and will continue to, cooperate fully with this criminal investigation.

A forensic audit of the department's financial records is being conducted, he reported, noting "It is the Board's intention to make the audit results public on the first appropriate date that those results can be released . . .."

On behalf of the Board he assured area residents that Middleburg's fire fighters and emergency medical service personnel remain on duty, and expressed his hope that "... our appreciation for what they do for all of us will not be diminished by these unfortunate events, for which none of them is responsible."

Reaction

The small audience gathered at Town Hall for the press conference, including the Mayor, Volunteer Fire Department Officers, and representatives of three local media organizations sat for some time in what can only be described as stunned silence.

One unidentified attendee stood and took the Board to task for apparently "forgetting" all the good Paul Draisey had done for the community, and gratuitously inflicting more pain and humiliation on the family and friends of a man who had just taken his own life.

The Volunteer Fire Department Board, however, stands by its statement, which on its surface is unambiguous, and at press time has neither been retracted nor modified in any way.

MacMahon was, on May 7, unable to answer questions raised by the press about the mechanisms in place to ensure ongoing oversight of the department's funds, before or after the alleged embezzlement.

The Money

At press time neither the County's forensic audit nor any other evidence of wrong-doing has been made public, and no one other than Paul Draisey has been named by the Volunteer Fire Department Board as a responsible party.

The signatures on the Department's IRS form 990 for 2009, the most recent made public by the Loudoun County Government are dated May 12, 2011. The form was signed by the non-profit organization's President, John B. Draisey, and by paid preparer Stephen L. Combs of the accounting firm Updegrove, Combs & McDaniel, PLC.

The 2009 form lists total revenues of $363,499, an increase of more than $47,000 from the year before. The 2008 and 2007 forms, prepared by the same accounting firm and signed by former Treasurer Paul Draisey, report total revenues of $316,080 and $317,302 respectively.

"Contributions and grants" and "investment income" are the listed as the largest sources of revenue for each of the three years.

Monies spent by the department are spread across several general categories, with little or none of the detail that a simple examination of the non-profit's checkbook might reveal.

Loudoun County's Role

Each year the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors approves a "contribution" to the Loudoun Country Fire and Rescue Commission for distribution to each volunteer fire and/or rescue company in the county.

The Fires and Rescue Commission, chaired by Douglas Rambo, then directs the County Treasurer to distribute the money in semi-annual increments, a process roughly similar to that followed by the Loudoun County Public Library Board of Trustees.

For each of the past two fiscal years, 2011 and 2010, those contributions have remained the same, a flat $166,294.

Asked about the Fire Commission's role determining when, where and how those funds are spent, Rambo told the Eccentric:

The Commission adopts and enforces guidelines that address a range of operational and administrative matters within our combined fire and rescue system.

Each company is an independent corporation and the Commission relies on their administrative and operational leadership to establish practices consistent with the guidelines and accepted business practices.

The Commission reserves the right to audit volunteer companies for compliance and requiring corrective actions if shortcomings are identified.

As for the Commission's role in the unfortunate developments in Middleburg, Rambo stated:

The Commission relies on each company's annual filing with the Internal Revenue Service as their annual financial report. Middleburg's last income tax filing was for the fiscal year ending 30 June 2010.

The Fire and Rescue Commission is working with the Sheriff's Office, the Department of Fire, Rescue, and Emergency Management, and County Administration to ensure that a complete investigation is conducted and appropriate corrective actions are taken.

We are relying on the Sheriff's Office investigation as well as a subsequent, independent audit to help us understand what occurred.

The Commission wants to ensure that the audits are thorough and if current financial management practices are not adequate, we want to ensure that the recommended changes are made.

Asked about the evidence, if any, against Paul Draisey, Rambo replied:

Again, we are relying on the Sheriff's Office investigation and the independent audit to help us understand the scope of this issue.

As for the impact of the missing funds on capital outlays, the expansion of the Middleburg Fire Station, equipment and operating expenses, Rambo said:

The company has advised that they have adequate financial resources for their ongoing operational and administrative needs. Contracts for the renovation of the Middleburg Station are funded and managed directly by the County's Department of Construction and Waste Management.

Career staff assigned to the Middleburg Fire and Rescue Station are Loudoun County employees and are paid directly by the County.

Rambo, stated on behalf of the Commission that, "We are saddened by the death of Mr. Draisey and extend our condolences to his family"

He also reassured the citizens of the Middleburg Area that. "Fire and rescue protection in the Middleburg area was not and has not been jeopardized as a result of the misappropriation of funds. Our volunteer companies responsibly manage public and County contributions in order to provide quality emergency fire and rescue services to their communities. We were disheartened to learn of this issue and are anxious to identify and correct any shortcomings identified through the investigation.

Rambo was joined by Board of Supervisors Chairman Scott York in his expressions of concern for the both the Draisey family and the Middleburg Department.

York expressed his "deepest condolences to the Draisey family" and extended his hope that "the Middleburg Volunteer Fire Department swiftly recovers from this sad incident."

York also noted that it was "his expectation that there will be further safeguards put in place to avoid this type of incident from happening the future."

The criminal investigation by the Loudoun County Sheriff's Department continues.

Non-financial Issues

Over the past several years the Middleburg department has been plagued by a number of unfortunate, sometimes well-reported, and sometimes rumor-based problems: allegations of sexual misconduct; career staff being pulled from the station in the face of reported conflicts with volunteers; resignations; allegations of equipment theft; and the re-deployment of a new heavy-duty rescue truck to the Aldie Fire Station.

The allegations of embezzlement on the part of one of its most well known and well-liked officers, in the words of one Middleburg resident, seemed like a bad end to an ongoing bad dream.