Discrepancies Cause Concern Over Alleged Fraud At Village of Merriman

The State Auditor's Office found over $10K that had not been deposited into the Village's bank account.

According to a report compiled by State Auditor Mike Foley’s office, auditors found discrepancies that indicated potential fraud totaling over $10k going back to October 2024 in the Village of Merriman.

The report states that Village Clerk CaCee McConaughey “appears… to have intentionally provided false information to the APA (Auditor of Pubic Accounts) in an attempt to hinder this office’s investigation, particularly to mislead our inquiry into the true nature and source of the $1,386.37 deposit that she made into the Village’s bank account on April 3, 2026.

Such apparent misconduct compelled the APA to expand the scope of our review of the Village’s utility customer billing activity to encompass the entire fiscal year of the audit waiver request.”  The report goes on to say  that “The APA identified numerous credited amounts, totaling $10,225.96, that appear not to have been deposited into the Village’s bank account during that period.”

On April 30, 2026, the APA forwarded the concerns to the Nebraska Attorney General.  It is the understanding of the Auditor’s office that the matter has since been referred to the Nebraska State Patrol for investigation, which is currently ongoing.