WYOMING -- Right after state police raided the Wyoming borough manager's private business office, some borough officials called for an emergency meeting and advocated she be suspended until the dust from the criminal investigation settles, but borough manager Tamra Smith remains on the job without restrictions.
Wyoming's new mayor has been in office just five weeks and he wonders what, if anything, borough council members will do about the embattled manager.
"Council needed immediately to suspend without pay until the investigation is completed," said Mayor Joseph Dominick.
Mayor Dominick is frustrated.
Borough manager Tamra Smith is still on the job, even though state police raided her office three weeks ago as part of a criminal investigation.
The affidavit for a search warrant indicates investigators were looking for evidence of theft by deception and forgery at the Wyoming Free Library and Wyoming Hose Company Number 1 when Smith was the treasurer of these organizations.
"I'm nervous myself," the mayor said. "You have our borough manager whose company that was raided, is also the company that does borough finances, borough accounting, and borough payroll."
Bob Borzell is one of many in Wyoming who say that while a criminal investigation continues, the borough council should have suspended Tamra Smith without pay.
"I don't believe in suspending with pay because that's like a paid vacation," Borzell said.
According to borough rules, it would be up to council president Steve Nelewajko to call a meeting and determine what to do about Tamra Smith. When we called him, Nelewajko said, "I don't have to tell you anything."
"I find it outrageous," Dominick responded.
Dominick believes some council members are trying to protect Tamra Smith.
When Dominick took office January 2, an email to him from Smith shows she listed the new mayor's first name as an obscenity we cannot show you on the air.
"To refer to someone as she did, and have my name saved in the borough email address book is just uncalled for. It speaks to the volume of professionalism that apparently is nonexistent," said Dominick.
And Dominick says questions about Tamra Smith's money management go beyond the criminal investigation.
Dominick learned the borough has not had an audit since 2015.
And the new mayor says he found red flags in the previous four yearly audits of the borough under Tamra Smith's term as manager.
"For 2012, '13, '14, and '15, basically cash payments for garbage refuse stickers cannot be accounted for," Dominick said.
Despite his criticism, the mayor says there is no guarantee the borough council will even discuss Tamra Smith during the criminal investigation, even though her accounting business that was raided still handles the borough's payroll.