Many years ago, Schuylkill County Controller Christy Joy was named treasurer of a Girl Scout Troop. He took a quick look at the group’s bank statement.

“And right away, I’m thinking, wait, where is there an Arby’s in Schuylkill County?” Joy said. “And on a Sunday, we don’t have meetings on a Sunday.”

The Girl Scout Troop’s finances had been depleted by fraud.

Joy and Schuylkill County District Attorney Mike O’Pake hosted a seminar, Anti-Fraud and Theft Prevention, at Pottsville’s Humane Fire Company on Thursday night. About 80 people attended. The Schuylkill County Commissioners, Mauch Chunk Bank and M&T Bank sponsored the event.

O’Pake said that good people turn out to help nonprofits by serving on advisory boards and working on fundraisers.

“Unfortunately, sometimes they get taken advantage of,” O’Pake said. “You need to be vigilant in looking at your books; sometimes you trust the wrong people.”

CPA John M. Nonnemacher, of Snyder and Clemente in Hazleton, spoke to the group. He’s been the treasurer for the Marian Catholic School Board for 32 years. Nonnemacher spoke first about the nuts and bolts of setting up a nonprofit organization, detailing the application and renewal processes, and responsibilities for filings with the Internal Revenue Service.

He said that nonprofit organizations can have their status revoked due to improper or late filing with the IRS. If the nonprofit status is revoked, contributions to the organization are not tax deductible, and the organization may lose the potential to get grants or municipal subsidies, he said.

When introducing the portion of his talk about fraud, Nonnemacher mentioned recent local cases, including the recent case involving the former director of Tamaqua’s Salvation Army. Nonnemacher outlined what he termed “the fraud triangle,” which is pressure, rationalization and opportunity.

He also pointed out that financial records of all 501c3 organizations are open to the public. Nonnemacher suggested using an Internet search, such as “tax exempt organizations” or a website called GuideStar.

Red flags that someone is using questionable or illegal accounting practices include that person living beyond their means, never taking time away from work, offering vague or defensive answers to questions, or having late charges and penalties for unpaid bills, he said.

Joy said that due to recent cases of fraud in the area, he and O’Pake thought the seminar would be informative.

“We needed to find a way to communicate and get the info out,” Joy said.

Nonnemacher said that the attendees had a lot in common.

“The reason that you’re here is because you’re helping people,” he said. “Remember what President Ronald Reagan said, ‘Trust, but verify.’”

Fraud prevention tips

• Segregation of duties — have more than one person involved.

• Two signatures on all checks.

• Bank statements reviewed monthly by independent person.

• Physical controls on blank check stock.

• All disbursements made by check.

• Report sheet for all fundraisers.

• Checks stamped “for deposit only.”

• Locked bank bag for deposits.

• No signing blank checks in advance.

• Pay from invoices, not statements.

• Physical control of inventory.

• If admission tickets are sold for an event, use consecutive numbering on tickets.

• Periodic treasurer reports.

• Rotate officers and duties.

• Limited used of credit cards.

• Periodic backups of computer file or information stored in the cloud.

• Limited use of online banking and passwords without approval and oversight.

• Use cybersecurity and anti-virus software.