Investigating "Serious Financial Irregularities"

Police are investigating the handling of $4 million during 18 years at a Lafayette agency that serves the mentally disabled.

One subject of the probe is the Wabash Center Inc.'s former chief financial officer, who died this fall during the audit.

Lafayette police Detective B.T. Brown said the name of Stephen McAninch "has come up during our investigation multiple times. We have not ruled out other suspects."

Tippecanoe County Sheriff Tracy Brown said his department was called to investigate McAninch's death Oct. 30. Police did not say how McAninch died.

A statement released by Wabash Center said he died "suddenly during the financial audit."

McAninch had worked at the nonprofit center as CFO since 1986, the Journal & Courier of Lafayette reported.

The center said in its statement that "serious financial irregularities" involving improper payments to vendors had been detected during the facility's annual audit in October. The improper payments totaling more than $4 million allegedly occurred between 1991 and 2009, the statement said.

The most recent audit, filed by an outside accounting firm approved by the State Board of Accounts, did not refer to missing money but noted a lack of documentation for certain billing and "significant deficiencies in internal control over financial reporting."

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Police Review Handling of $4M at Lafayette Agency