A Florida country club has sued its accounting firm and an audit manager after losing approximately $1 million that was allegedly embezzled by a country-club employee.
The San Jose Country Club in Jacksonville named as defendants Deloitte & Touche and an audit manager, Gabriele M. Beyer, according to the Jacksonville Business Journal.
The employee is question is William Dietz, who was the country club’s controller from 1994 until shortly before his arrest in October, when he was charged with grand theft. Dietz posted $35,003 bond, reported the Journal, and is scheduled for trial on March 22.
At the time of Dietz’s arrest, according to the paper, investigators set the total amount taken at $999,473. The country club has sued for about $5 million in damages, which includes $200,000 in fees paid to Deloitte during the period the money was allegedly taken, $200,000 in research to uncover the theft, and $3.5 million in lost revenue, reported the paper.
According to the Journal, the suit reportedly accuses Deloitte & Touche and Beyer of accountant malpractice and breach of fiduciary duty. It also alleges that Deloitte & Touche “failed to advise SJCC of problems with its internal controls which allowed Dietz to engage in his theft” and that its audits were not in accordance with generally accepted auditing standards.
Deloitte did not respond to requests for comment by the Journal, the paper reported.