DECATUR, Ga. (AP) - Two former Georgia state workers have been indicted on charges that they used a state purchasing card to buy more than $18,000 in auto parts for themselves, while a store clerk is charged with helping cover up the theft.
Oscar Cooke of Riverdale, Roosevelt Addie of Jonesboro and NAPA Auto Parts employee Openzender Tanner were indicted June 1 by a DeKalb County grand jury.
State Inspector General Scott McAfee announced the indictments Thursday. It's unclear if the men have lawyers representing them
The indictment alleges that Addie and Cooke misused their state purchasing cards to buy auto parts a combined 55 times between 2015 and 2017 from NAPA Auto Parts. They are charged with unlawful use of state funds and theft by taking.
Addie was a manager, and Cooke was a warehouse supervisor for the Georgia Department of Transportation, McAfee said. He said the men claimed that they were buying parts for department vehicles. However, an audit showed the parts were designed for cars and trucks made by Ferrari, Cadillac, Hummer, Bentley, Porsche, and Lexus.
The indictment alleges Tanner colluded with the men to cover up the purchases by creating and altering billing data to list different parts than those actually purchased. Tanner is charged with computer forgery.