A state audit of the tiny Iowa city of Mystic has found the south central Iowa town’s fired city clerk mishandled over seven-thousand dollars in city funds. The mayor of Mystic asked for the audit after a bunch of checks were found in the desk of City Clerk Gretchen Squier.
The State Auditor and his staff reviewed records from January of 2006 through January 31st of this year. They found Squier had made over $500 in "improper" payments to cover 274 personal phone calls Squier made on the city’s dime — and on the city’s time. The audit also found she had failed to deposit nearly $6,700 in checks to the City of Mystic for water and sewer fees. Squier was placed on unpaid leave in January and then fired this past April.