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Lawyers for the town and a vendor caught up in a six-figure scam are negotiating a settlement that would have the two parties splitting the cost of money lost in the fraud, Select Board Chair Kevin Johnson said in an interview on Monday, Aug. 16.
Johnson said in May that the town had been “the victim of a fraud scheme in which it received fraudulent payment instructions that were made to appear as if they came from a vendor, diverting $189,199 of municipal funds away from the intended recipient.”
Local, state and federal law enforcement authorities are investigating the scheme, but so far no suspect has been publicly identified or charged. Johnson said the odds are slim that the money will be recouped, so the town and the vendor, whom he declined to identify, are talking about splitting the cost of replacing the stolen payment.
“We’re trying to come up with something that satisfies the town and the vendor,” Johnson said. The town has cyberfraud insurance, Johnson said, but it will not cover the loss. “Apparently, it’s useless.”
Johnson said talks between the town and vendor have been ongoing, with legal fees climbing along the way. “We’re hoping for resolution in the next day or two.”
