Michael Boaz, the former town manager of Pilot Mountain, N.C., was indicted May 11 on a felony embezzlement charge, according to the North Carolina State Auditor’s report released the same day. The report reviewed $317,000 in spending by Boaz from 2022 to late 2024 and identified about $18,000 as personal expenses, including $419 for a hotel tab on a family vacation, $1,576 in DoorDash orders, and $276 in ammunition from Lucky Gunner. As town manager and finance officer, Boaz could approve his own purchases. He declined to comment. The town has since separated the two roles, Mayor Donna Kiger said.
Pilot Mountain is one of a growing number of U.S. towns and cities where independent watchdogs are flagging misuse of government purchasing cards, known as p-cards. Issued to streamline business purchases, p-cards often operate under minimal oversight, according to government procurement experts.
“We have auditors that are now getting to look at things that they usually didn’t look at,” said North Carolina State Auditor Dave Boliek, a Republican. The volume of tips flowing into his office has nearly doubled, he said, a sign of rising public scrutiny.
Will Fletcher, president of the Association of Inspectors General, said pricey food purchases particularly irritate taxpayers amid high grocery costs. “They go to the store and they see those things, and they decide to pass on them,” he said, “only to find out that they end up paying for that stuff for other people.”
In Richmond, Va., a city audit last year identified $5 million in questionable transactions out of about $21 million over roughly two years. The purchases included $1,423 on a catered lunch for 14 employees, $738 on drinks and supplies for an 11-person appreciation event, and a $480 business suit for an employee to wear to court. The city said it has overhauled its p-card program, reducing the number of cards from 320 to 67.
In March, the Daytona Beach city auditor cited weak p-card supervision in the fire department, calling out expenses such as baby-shower cards, Ramadan decorations, a “premium collapsible beer can cooler,” and televisions. The Florida Attorney General’s Office of Statewide Prosecution subpoenaed the city as part of a criminal investigation, seeking records for p-card transactions linked to Mayor Derrick Henry, including a $1,121 charge at Hotel President in Budapest. A city spokeswoman said the city provided the records and updated its policies.
Anchorage’s internal auditor, in a March report on school district spending, highlighted a $2,937 fast-food purchase split into charges of $2,453 and $484, which the auditor said appeared designed to circumvent a $2,500 cap and add a $480 gratuity. The district told the auditor it reminded staff that split purchases are not allowed.
Boliek said artificial intelligence is helping his team analyze transactions more efficiently. “In the old days, which was a year ago,” he said, “you’d print out the statements of the town Visa card, Mastercard, and you would hand out a box of highlighters and go to work.”
In Elizabeth City, N.C., auditors last fall flagged a $32.99 stuffed flounder meal ordered by eight city employees at a restaurant 30 miles away from the city. City Manager Reginald Goodson, who was not in the role at the time, said staff could use their per-diem food allowance as they wished. Asked if they could have eaten once they got home, he said, “That is a valid complaint there. I would agree with that.”
Jessica Tillipman, a government-procurement expert at George Washington University Law School, said the key is to “punish the abusers and make an example of them. Because that’s the warning for all others.” She said she tells her students to imagine any purchase making headlines: “If this hit the news, would you be OK with it?”
In Pilot Mountain, local resident Lesa Butner, a retired police officer, said of the ammunition purchase: “I want ammunition, too, but I wouldn’t come in and pick your pocket for it.” Michael Gagin, an engineer draftsman who addressed the town board, said he felt cheated. “No one should be essentially left free with the town’s pocketbook,” he said.
Mayor Kiger said the town now has just two credit cards that must be signed out and that her priority is implementing policies to prevent a recurrence. “People at my church have stopped me and said, ‘I’m so proud of you for standing up and taking care of the town when so many other people would have walked away,’” she said.