PANAMA CITY BEACH – The financial director of the Panama City Beach sports complex has been arrested and charged with embezzling $ 37,000, the Bay County Sheriff’s Office said Tuesday.
Darren Landry, 51, of Walton County, has been charged with robbery and ongoing fraud scheme, according to a press release from BCSO,
Last week, employees of the Convention and Tourism Office noticed discrepancies in the sports complex’s accounting records, the press release said. A close review of the files showed what appeared to be continued theft from the resort’s ticket sales, as well as the submission of fraudulent documents to CVB employees.
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Finding evidence of theft, officials from the Convention and Tourism Bureau filed a report with the sheriff’s office. A BCSO investigation found Landry embezzled $ 37,000 in the past year, the press release said.
As part of his daily work, Landry was in charge of the complex’s collection proceeds and had access to all funds and accounting documents. Investigators believe Landry was changing the amount of money taken from the complex on the accounting records to hide the amount of money he was taking.
Landry was arrested on warrant with the help of the Walton County Sheriff’s Office. He was held in Walton County Jail and will be extradited to Bay County for his first court appearance.
