WCPS employee faces felony charge
By Sierra Henry
Published in News on September 2, 2018 3:05 AM
Submitted photo
Hobbs
A Wayne County Public Schools employee is facing felony charges after police say he took cleaning supplies and other janitorial items from the storage warehouse on Brian Street in Goldsboro.
Michael Wayne Hobbs, 50, of 121 South Winds Drive, Dudley, is charged with larceny by employee, which means the theft of anything less than $100,000. He was arrested Wednesday morning, jailed and released on an $8,000 secured bond.
Hobbs is the WCPS Operations Department warehouse foreman. He has been employed by WCPS since December 2009 and was placed on administrative leave on Thursday.
"We appreciate the Wayne County Sheriff's Office for its support and attention to detail in this investigation," Superintendent Michael Dunsmore said in a statement released Friday morning. "As a public entity, we have a responsibility to be fiscally responsible and maintain the highest integrity in all areas of our school operations.
"As such, the district is currently auditing its protocols and safeguards in the areas of warehouse shipping and receiving and will address any areas of concern to better protect custodial supplies and other inventories from potential theft or mismanagement."
WCPS declined further comments.
WCPS approached the Wayne County Sheriff's Office in May with concerns regarding possible thefts of custodial supplies from within the WCPS Operations Department. The sheriff's office conducted surveillance on a few individuals over the course of the last few months, it says in a sheriff's office statement.
The sheriff's office discovered purchases made of several of the stolen items identified as WCPS property.
On Wednesday, the sheriff's office conducted a vehicle traffic stop on an unnamed individual, who had been identified as having some of the stolen items. During the traffic stop, several items inside the vehicle were identified as belonging to WCPS and were seized.
After several interviews and obtaining a search warrant, the sheriff's office said in a statement it believes Hobbs was taking items from the warehouse where he worked and selling them to people, who would resell them in Wayne and surrounding counties.
Sheriff's Capt. Shawn Harris said the office does not know the total value of the items, and the investigation is continuing.