Central Ohio Today

A former Clark County Auditor’s Office employee charged with stealing money from the department pleaded not guilty in court Friday morning.

Robert Vanderhorst, 63, entered the plea after he was arraigned in Clark County Common Pleas Court, according to Ethan Ernst, a Clark County Courts deputy clerk. Ernst told Central Ohio Today that Vanderhorst entered a not guilty plea at a brief hearing held at 10 a.m.

Clark County Prosecuting Attorney Dan Driscoll told Central Ohio Today that Vanderhorst was indicted by a grand jury on Monday for theft from the county office. The indictment says the amount of money is he reported to have taken exceeds $7,500, Driscoll said. 

He declined to say how much is believed to have been taken.

“I can’t get into that because there’s an ongoing investigation,” Driscoll said.

The case has been assigned to Judge Douglas Rastatter, who will review pretrial and trial motions, the prosecutor said. No date for a second appearance has been set.

Clark County Auditor John Federer, on ClarkCountyFacts.com, a website he set up to share information on the case, said it appears the money was stolen from an operational account funded by fees charged for real estate transactions and not tax dollars. He said Vanderhorst was immediately dismissed once the theft came to light.

“The investigation is ongoing, but it’s been alleged that Bob Vanderhorst used the extensive knowledge, tenure, and trust gained over a 30-year career in Clark County to steal money from Clark County citizens,” Federer said on the website. “From what I think so far, he stole money from an office account by using a fake vendor to create invoices and checks. Vanderhorst’s scheme was hardwired into the office’s operations and he ensured it stayed there when we upgraded the countywide financial management systems.

“Last year, one of my employees noticed a strange transaction and reported the finding to the county prosecutor, triggering the investigation and then Vanderhorst’s termination,” he said.

The case is being investigated by Ohio Auditor of State Keith Faber’s Special Investigation Unit, which is performing a forensic audit.

Federer, who termed the theft “a shocking betrayal,” said a new financial management system that was implemented between 2013 and 2015 will serve as a deterrent to future such incidents.

On his website, the auditor said Vanderhorst had previously worked for the state auditor’s office before joining the Clark County Auditor’s Office in 1991. He worked there for three decades, aside from two years between 2003-05.

Vanderhorst served as a deputy auditor for real estate, and later as deputy auditor for bookkeeping.

Jon Paul Rion, the lawyer representing Vanderhorst, said his client is cooperating with the investigation. Rion said that meant Vanderhorst was working with authorities, not that he has admitted taking any money. He said he could not be more specific on the amount of money that his client is accused of taking, of if he would be able to make restitution if found guilty, but reiterated that Vanderhorst is being cooperative.

“The goal is to show the citizens get what they deserve,” Rion told Central Ohio Today.

Driscoll declined to confirm that Vanderhorst was speaking to investigators.

“I can’t get into that because there’s an ongoing investigation,” he said.

Driscoll also refused to say if Vanderhorst had admitted to taking the money, again citing the ongoing investigation.

Driscoll has worked for the prosecutor’s office for 18 years and has been the lead prosecutor for three years. He said while there have been cases involving township officials diverting money for their personal use, he cannot recall a similar incident involving a county employee.