NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – State investigators have launched a criminal investigation into the former finance director of Abita Springs.
Fox 8 combed through hundreds of documents that revealed Stacy Ludlow may have spent tens of thousands of dollars on personal charges on her town credit card. Some of the items purchased included wine, food, and a mattress.
On Saturday, April 8, 2022, Ludlow’s public credit card statements show charges of $83.90 for a DoorDash delivery from Total Wine & More, and a DoorDash charge of $43.33 at Zen Japanese Sushi. $126 of wine and dinner, both paid for by taxpayers but delivered to the door of Stacy Ludlow.
Dillard political analyst Robert Collins says it is clear the charges were not linked to city business.
“It’s pretty clear that these are not lawful government expenditures. These are these are clearly personal expenditures intended to benefit one individual. They’re not intended to benefit the city, or the residents of that city,” Collins said.
In about two years, Ludlow charged nearly $105,000 on her town credit card, leaving taxpayers to cover the bill. Many of the charges are now under investigation for potential fraud.
Fox 8 reviewed the credit card statements with Collins, who said most of the charges appeared to be personal. That included charges at Land’s End, European Wax Center, Bella Salon, DreamCloud Mattress, and monthly subscriptions to Hulu and Amazon Prime Video.
Ludlow’s card also showed multiple purchases at Total Wine & More. In less than two years, the bills totaled nearly $1,700. DoorDash orders totaled just over $7,500. Amazon orders, most of which were delivered to Ludlow’s home, totaled more than $26,000. Sam’s club orders totaled more that $10,000, Walmart orders totaled nearly $5,000, and Target orders amounted to more than $4,000.
Some of the charges that appear to be personal in nature include a sleep mask, pee pads for puppies, a heated queen size mattress, a non-slip shower mat, and high heel bridal wedding shoes all ordered from Amazon.
Walmart orders that appeared to be personal in nature included a receipt that showed the purchase of socks, four dresses, and five rugs.
Other purchases included items from MyPillow, a tobacco store, a $97 purchase from online sex toy shop Eden Fantasys, $5,600 at an Orange Beach, Al condo complex owned by Caribe Realty, $262 at Bra Genie, and $100 at Altitude Jump Park.
In January 2022, Ludlow spent $195 at Tuxedos to Geaux. Emails show Ludlow was looking to purchase a tuxedo for her son. She told the company he planned to wear it for graduation and the Endymion Extravaganza. Ludlow emailed the business the number to her town credit card in order to pay for the tuxedo, leaving taxpayers to foot the bill.
Ludlow was hired in August 2019. Her town credit card bill remained relatively low until September 2021, when charges started to escalate. The high charges continued for about two years.
Collins said he’s shocked no one in town caught on sooner, but adds since Ludlow was the finance director, she would have been responsible for oversight of the town’s finances.
“If any auditor were to just scan this list it seems like all sorts of red flags should have gone up,” Collins said.
The Town of Abita Springs hired an independent auditor each year to review its finances. According to the 2022 audit, CPA firm Ericksen Krentel reviewed the town’s credit cards and found no exceptions, meaning no problems. Collins says the questionable charges should have been easy to spot.
“Well, if they hired an independent auditor to come and do an internal audit, yes, then they failed in doing their job because they should have caught it,” Collins said.
Abita Springs eventually caught the charges. In September of 2023, the town fired Ludlow, accusing her of gross misconduct and dishonesty.
“So, that’s what makes that’s what makes people not only upset that their taxpayer money is not being spent. That’s what sort of breeds the current suspicion and distrust of government right now, people people are just especially in this state,” Collins said.
Fox 8 reached out to Ludlow for a comment. Her attorney Roy Burns responded by email saying he advised Ludlow against commenting but wrote that she denied any wrongdoing. Fox 8 responded asking for backup documentation to show several purchases were not personal, or to explain those purchases. Burns responded that he stands by his previous statement, denying wrongdoing by Ludlow.
The town clerk told Fox 8 Thursday evening the town was unaware Ludlow even had a card for most of the time she was making charges. Those charges amounted to more than $105,000 in about two years.
Mayor Dan Curtis declined an interview with Fox 8 saying he’s waiting for the investigation to be completed. He did answer several questions from Fox 8 by email. Late Thursday afternoon he sent an email to other elected officials in Abita Springs alerting them of our investigation.
In the email Curtis wrote, “We are making every effort to recover misappropriated funds and to put safeguards in place to ensure no one can ever commit such crimes again. In the meantime, it is unfortunate that the character of our Town and the many fine people who work here are being besmirched by the actions of a few.”
Fox 8 reached out to the St. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s Office about an ongoing investigation. A spokesperson told us the sheriff’s office received a complaint from the town and sent the information to the State Legislative Auditor. The Sheriff’s office told us it is awaiting the conclusion of that audit/investigation.
Fox 8 also reached out to Ericksen Krentel, which performed the 2022 audit, but didn’t hear back.
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