Case of missing Freon is a matter of poor paperwork

Adrienne Packer

Friday, Oct. 27, 2000 | 11:18 a.m.

Preliminary results from an internal investigation into $200,000 worth of missing Freon say inventory forms fed to the media were fake and much of the refrigerant has been accounted for, Clark County sources said.

The internal audit was launched after inventory lists surfaced in August showing Clark County never received credit for thousands of pounds of Freon after it had been removed from downtown buildings in 1996.

Because Freon is still a valuable commodity and can be sold on the black market, the missing gas raised county officials' suspicions. Clark County Manager Dale Askew asked for the investigation in August.

Sources who have reviewed the audit say the inventory documents delivered to a local television station were not used by the county or the contractor who extracted the Freon.

According to the audit, 980 pounds of air-conditioning refrigerant taken from the Bridger Building in downtown Las Vegas was used in other systems; 2,000 pounds taken from the Clark Count Courthouse was sold and another 200 pounds was thrown away.

Auditors, however, could not determine what happened to 1,400 pounds removed from the Clark County Detention Center. County officials blamed poor record-keeping and have vowed to take steps to more accurately keep track of Freon containers.

As a result of the investigation, Facilities Manager Bill Barrett was stripped of his responsibility to oversee the removal of Freon from air-conditioning systems, sources said.

The timing of the inventory leak led some to believe it was a smear campaign against Barrett.

Barrett, who oversees a union division, had publicly campaigned for Clark County Commissioner Mary Kincaid before the September primary election. Many unions were upset with Kincaid after she voted against an ordinance that would have prohibited the nonunion Wal-Mart from opening a Supercenter store.

A video also submitted to a television station showed Barrett leaving Kincaid's headquarters and climbing into his county vehicle, a violation of county policy that prohibits employees from campaigning on county time.

The video from the newscast was later e-mailed to county employees. The clip, which was sent from Barrett's computer, was slugged, "Look I am a star."