High Art, Low Value, Part 2: How a Connoisseur Became a Convict

This case history is excerpted and adapted from the upcoming book, "Fraud Casebook: Lessons from the Bad Side of Business," by Joseph T. Wells, CFE, CPA, to be published by Wiley and Sons in July.  

Lawrence Fairbanks was a popular university official but he apparently had an aberrant psychological need to buy and preserve antiquities and objets d'art and send the doctored bills to the university. Here's how the lead fraud examiner discovered Fairbanks' obsession, how she catalogued every last curiosity, and the lessons she learned.

Our story so far: Ellen Fischer has discovered, through Aesop University's Materiel Acquisition and Disbursement automated system, several questionable purchases paid through Lawrence Fairbank's department. Ellen the Audit Manager now transforms into Ellie the Temporary Bookkeeper to find the whole truth.