BALTIMORE — A new Inspector General's report highlights how a former Baltimore City employee used their agency's Amazon Prime account to purchase personal items.
The employee worked for the Baltimore City Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Safety & Engagement, also known as MONSE.
Between October 2021 and December 2022, the ex-employee allegedly bought 23 personal items on Amazon using the City's account.
Despite paying with their own credit card, the employee admitted to avoiding state sales tax by using the City's tax-exempt status.
"These actions may have violated Maryland state sales tax law and City policy," the report says.
The employee in question was given account access to place and approve orders on the City's behalf.
According to the Inspector General, the account should've but didn't have settings installed to stop payment modifications.
As result the employee could add their own credit card and shipping address to the account.
Investigators concluded MONSE supervisors were aware of this, for which they denied in response.
MONSE did say they plan on configuring the account settings to prevent similar misconduct in the future.
To read the full report, click here.
