A phishing scam siphoned more than $400,000 from Chester in June, and the state-appointed receiver who is handling the beleaguered city’s finances wants to know why his office wasn’t notified until two weeks ago.
In a memo sent to Mayor Thaddeus Kirkland and Chester’s city council on Monday, Michael T. Doweary said “the entire incident is extremely troubling,” and noted that his office only learned of the fraud on Oct. 21 when the city publicly announced the loss.
The theft occurred on June 6, when City Councilman William Morgan, the city’s director of accounts and finance, received an email that he believed came from Connor, Strong & Buckelew, the firm that provides the city’s workers’ comp insurance, asking for the city’s monthly payment. Morgan paid the bill, he later told police, only to eventually discover that the request for payment had been sent by a thief who created a false email address that closely resembled the insurance firm’s email.
Chester police investigated, according to Police Commissioner Steven Gretsky, and referred the case to the cyber crimes unit of the Delaware County District Attorney’s Office in October, after learning how much money had been stolen.
A spokesperson for District Attorney Jack Stollsteimer declined to comment Wednesday, citing the ongoing investigation.
As of this week, the funds have not been recovered, according to Morgan.
The phishing scam is the second to strike a government agency in Chester in recent months,…
