Overview
- The Austin City Auditor’s Office on Dec. 9 released findings that Mark Ybarra used a city credit card and falsified records to pay fictitious or related vendors from 2017 to 2023.
- Auditors said some vendor contacts were tied to Ybarra or his relatives, and the scheme surfaced after managers flagged sparse invoices; Ybarra resigned when questioned in 2023.
- A Travis County grand jury indicted Ybarra in August on a first-degree felony theft charge, and he was booked in September before being released on a personal bond.
- Two managers, Sammy Ramirez and Renee Codina, improperly approved suspicious invoices, with Ramirez now retired and Codina still employed, according to the report.
- The auditor referred the case to the Austin Police Department, and Austin Energy says it has shifted to management-approved contracts and tightened purchasing controls.