Hotline Hero

Soft-voiced Daniel Paul doesn’t strike one as a crimebuster. but the Dallas city auditor has proven to be just that. Paul, a CPA and CFE (Certified Fraud Examiner), is responsible for handling cases arising from complaints to Dallas’ Fraud, Waste and Abuse Hotline (293-7283).

With one full-time investigator and a $32,000 budget, Paul says the city had, through October, closed 90 of 165 cases. The completed inquiries, through December, had yielded more than $450,000 in funds saved or to be recovered. One case resulted in a criminal indictment for $ 106,000 against a former court services cashier accused of stealing money. Paul notes that the expected returns on just three of the 75 cases still open would amount to an annual savings of more than $250,000.

Hotline complaints are passed along to Paul, who decides a course of action- ranging from requesting a response from a department head to opening an undercover investigation.

Paul says the department heads don’t always appreciate being checked up on. “Some are used to getting things they shouldn’t be getting.” Paul says. “But we’re putting a stop to that.”