A forensic review presented to the Ojai City Council on Dec. 9 found no direct evidence that former assistant city manager Carl Alameda embezzled funds while employed by the city, but the consulting firm said evidence gaps and weak internal controls left open the possibility of undetected misconduct.

"We did not find any direct evidence that Carl Alameda embezzled or otherwise was engaged in financial misconduct while here at the city," said Sharina Boddie, managing director at Kroll, during a presentation of the firm’s targeted forensic review. She added a caveat: "I can say that I found no evidence of it. It's hard for me to say he did not do it." The review was limited in part by short digital‑log retention and by the delayed return of devices and some paper records.

Kroll described a three‑phase engagement that began after a May 15 press release publicizing Alameda’s indictment in another jurisdiction. The firm said it examined bank and credit‑card records, interviewed 13 staff across functions, searched Alameda’s office and performed targeted email searches and account reconciliations. Auditors said they took a sample‑based approach rather than reviewing every transaction.

Although investigators did not find direct evidence of diversion, they identified multiple control weaknesses that could make fraud harder to detect: paper‑heavy recordkeeping without reliable digital trails; a seven‑day log retention period in the city’s Office 365 configuration; understaffing and single‑person workflows in finance; inconsistent grant accounting and accounts receivable reconciliation; and vendor on‑boarding processes that lacked robust verification.

Kroll recommended a series of reforms, including implementing purchase‑order requisitions, enhancing vendor due diligence and master‑file hygiene, digitizing records to create auditable trails, increasing log retention to at least 180 days and creating stronger separation of duties and bank reconciliation practices. The firm also suggested physical controls for check stock and more rigorous employee separation procedures, such as rapid revocation of digital access.

Council members pressed whether Kroll had verified that fixes were already in place. Boddie said the firm had been told by staff that many changes were "in process or being established," but Kroll had not validated full implementation.

The council did not take any immediate vote related to the report; staff said a finance lead will oversee implementation and return with status updates.