Jonesboro, AR – The Sun – A legislative audit involving the Nettleton School District has been referred to state prosecutors after nearly $2 million in payments were sent to a fraudulent bank account, according to reporting by The Sun.
The Sun reported that the issue was discussed during a meeting of the Legislative Joint Auditing Committee’s Committee on Educational Institutions as lawmakers reviewed the district’s 2025 audit.
According to the audit, cited by The Sun, the district initiated four transactions totaling about $1.99 million between March 18 and April 4, 2025, after receiving emails requesting changes to bank account information for two vendors. The requests were processed without verifying the authenticity of the changes.
The district discovered the problem April 8 after a bank noticed the name on the receiving account did not match the name on the payment, The Sun reported.
The district recovered about $1.58 million through its bank, and a vendor involved agreed to repay additional funds through monthly installments, leaving a loss of roughly $204,890.
According to The Sun, the findings have been referred to the 2nd Judicial District Prosecuting Attorney and the Arkansas Attorney General.
The newspaper also reported that legislative auditors have been working with school districts statewide to strengthen financial controls following similar incidents.