A new audit found that Orange County leaders may have lost more money than initially realized under the watch of former Supervisor Andrew Do, detailing a series of contracts auditors say Do steered without documenting what happened to it.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The audit came after Do pleaded guilty to accepting bribes in exchange for rerouting over $10 million worth of contracts, with a judge ultimately sentencing him to five years in federal prison last year.\u00a0<\/p>\n
[Read: Former OC Supervisor Sentenced to 5 Years in Federal Prison in Bribery Scheme<\/a>]<\/p>\n Do\u2019s lawyer did not respond to requests for comment.\u00a0<\/p>\n Now, auditors from the Weaver-Tidwell firm say they\u2019ve reviewed over $486 million of contracts and found a series of questionable expenditures where Do ordered county staff to approve a vendor without the proper paperwork or covered up where grant money was actually going.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWe identified a pattern of contracts and grants being steered to certain businesses by Former Supervisor Do, which was often facilitated by his Chief of Staff,\u201d auditors wrote in their report to county supervisors.\u00a0<\/p>\n To review a copy of the report, click here<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n They also noted that Do \u201cestablished a culture where decisions related to District 1 contracts were not to be questioned, with procurement staff concerned that they would receive a phone call from Former Supervisor Do or his Chief of Staff if their requests were not approved.\u201d<\/p>\n While the federal investigation focused on contracts set up to feed the elderly during the pandemic that were secretly used to funnel money to Do and the company\u2019s owners, the county\u2019s new audit found a series of other questionable payouts to many of the same people through other contracts.\u00a0<\/p>\n It\u2019s part of a review launched last November by county supervisors, looking at 145 contracts that raised red flags with county staff from when Do was on the board.\u00a0<\/p>\n [Read: OC Supervisors Move Forward on Auditing Over $4 Billion After Bribery Scandal<\/a>]<\/p>\n The full review is set to cover over 2,500 contracts over nearly 10 years, including nearly every major vote Do made during his nearly decade-long tenure on the board of supervisors.\u00a0<\/p>\n What Did Auditors Review?\u00a0<\/p>\n While county supervisors asked the auditors to review over $4 billion worth of contracts from\u00a0 places like the county general fund, pandemic relief funds and the state\u2019s Mental Health Services Act, this audit only focused on contracts the auditors considered \u201chigh risk.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n In that bundle of contracts, worth nearly half a billion dollars, auditors say they found a series of agreements where Do and his former chief of staff, Chris Wangsaporn, moved county funds to specific vendors despite questions on what work they were actually doing.\u00a0<\/p>\n Many of those contracts were tied into the annual Tet and Moon Festivals put on by Do\u2019s office, where auditors said Do regularly handpicked contractors and paid them in advance \u201cwithout competitive bidding or solicitation of quotes from other businesses.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n According to the report, one of those companies was 2T Media, which Do used for both festivals and ultimately received over $590,000 from over a dozen county contracts despite it being unclear what work they did.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cContracts were awarded on a firm-fixed fee basis, with limited detail on the scope of services, contractor requirements or contract deliverables,\u201d auditors wrote. \u201cThe contracts to 2T Media resembled a retainer agreement where 2T Media was paid regardless of whether services were performed.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n 2T Media did not respond to requests for comment.\u00a0<\/p>\n Auditors also found that 2T Media and several other companies received grants from Do\u2019s office, but the grants were masked through donations to the Westminster Chamber of Commerce and the Garden Grove Community Foundation.\u00a0<\/p>\n While Chamber and the Foundation each received the funds, they were directed by Do on where to send the bulk of the money, which went to companies including 2T Media and the Viet America Society, which was the primary company that federal investigators said paid Do bribes.\u00a0<\/p>\n Peter Pham, the former head of Viet America Society, is facing over 15 charges from federal prosecutors and is currently a \u201cfugitive from justice.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n