Four UF employees resigned after being accused of using university money to buy about $30,000 worth of DVDs, digital cameras, furniture and other items for personal use.
A yearly audit found the employees charged the items to their purchasing cards, known as PCards, which UF gives to some faculty and staff to use for small purchases.
Though all four employees involved resigned, according to UF spokeswoman Janine Sikes, it appears criminal charges have only been filed against three of them.
Sikes wrote in an e-mail that she believes the State Attorney's Office has decided not to file charges in the fourth case because the woman did not steal much. Records indicate her fraudulent purchases totaled at least $468.
Spencer Mann, spokesman for the State Attorney's Office, confirmed that no charges have been filed against the fourth employee in the Eighth Judicial Circuit, which includes Alachua County, but could not say if charges have been filed elsewhere.
The former employee responsible for the most fraud is Brian Manning, who was an IT specialist in UF's ophthalmology department. Manning began at UF in 2005 and earned a salary of about $42,000.
UF's investigation found he used about $16,400 of university money for nearly 150 fraudulent purchases in 2007 and 2008. In many cases, he submitted receipts with handwritten descriptions that turned out to be false.
Manning spent more than $5,300 on video game systems - including Xbox 360s and a Playstation 3 - and accessories, more than $2,300 on cameras and related items, about $1,600 on DVDs, about $1,400 on furniture, almost $1,400 on iPods and communication equipment and almost $2,500 on other items like GPS navigation systems.
In an interview with UF officials in April, Manning admitted he had been making personal purchases with university money for several years. He said he knew what he was doing was inappropriate and agreed to pay the university back.
Manning was charged with felony fraud. On Thursday, he agreed to a deal with the State Attorney's Office under which he would reimburse UF $15,844 - the amount he stole minus shipping and handling - and pay the University Police Department about $918 for investigation costs.
Manning would also be required to do 50 hours of community service.
Mann said if Manning follows the terms of the agreement, the State Attorney's office would not criminally prosecute him.
Kelly Lewis, the former employee charged with the second-highest amount of fraud, spent about $8,800 of UF money on personal items from 2007 to 2009, according to the investigation.
Lewis, who was an office assistant in the soil and water science department, had been at UF since 1981 and earned a salary of about $38,000.
She spent about $2,500 on digital cameras and accessories, almost $2,000 on 126 DVDs and about $1,600 in electronics and yard equipment, among other things.
Her DVD selections included titles like "Sex and the City," "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas," and "Perfect Hips Belly Dance."
In an interview with UF officials, she admitted she used UF money for personal purchases but declined to offer more information.
Lewis was charged with felony fraud, pleaded not guilty in June and agreed to a deal with the State Attorney's office in August under which she would reimburse UF almost $8,600 - the cost of her purchases minus shipping and handling - and more than $2,500 for investigation costs.
She also agreed to 50 hours of community service and, like Manning, will not be criminally prosecuted if she follows the terms of her deal.
Sheila Springs, the third and final former UF employee charged with a crime, used about $3,400 of UF's money on personal items.
She told police she bought things she wanted for her family but could not afford.
She said she had never been in this kind of trouble before and expressed an interest in reimbursing UF.
Springs, a former fiscal assistant in UF's chemistry department, had been with UF since 1999 and earned a salary of about $28,000.
Her fraudulent purchases included about $1,600 in digital cameras and accessories and about $1,300 in other electronics like a Nintendo Wii and a DVD player.
Her prior criminal history includes dozens of charges, dating back to 1992, for passing worthless checks.
Springs pleaded no contest to grand theft in August in exchange for 18 months of probation. She has already reimbursed UF for the full cost of her purchases.
According to a statement from her pastor, Ray Scott of First Baptist Church in Archer, Springs has served as a youth director, Sunday school teacher and vacation bible school director at her church.
She stated in a court document that she'd like to continue her education at Santa Fe College and become an elementary school teacher.
Roberta Peacock, the fourth former UF employee accused of fraud, was found to have used about $468 of UF's money for personal items, including a Weight Watchers starter kit and diet books as well as a number of purchases from the Family Christian Store.
Investigators noted that many of the receipts had been modified with a typewriter to make items listed look like World War II books used by the department, and many had hand-written descriptions that didn't match the actual purchases.
Investigators also uncovered a fifth case of potential fraud. But after examining the purchases, UF determined that no laws were broken. UF policies were violated, however, and the employees were reprimanded, said Matt Fajack, UF's chief financial officer.
Fajack said UF has taken steps to prevent further PCard fraud.
Most purchases must now be made through a series of online catalogs. Those that aren't will be subject to more scrutiny, he said.
"You need to look at things like Amazon(.com) a little closer," he said. "Yeah, you can get your book on soil samples at a good price, but you can also get a flat-screen TV."
UF will continue the practice of auditing suspicious transactions, as it did with this year's investigation. Previously, audits of PCard purchases were conducted randomly.
UF employees that use PCards will also be given more training, Fajack said, and UF will end the practice of allowing subordinates to verify their bosses' purchases.
Even though they can be risky, Fajack said UF won't stop using PCards, adding that the reduction in paperwork for the cards saves UF $6 million to $7 million a year.
UF employees spent about $78 million with about 4,900 PCards in 2008.
As for the four employees accused of fraud, Fajack said they may have resigned, but a note will be added in their files that indicates UF would not rehire them, which should deter potential employers.
"That's the kiss of death," Fajack said. "Everybody knows that's the code word for don't hire this person."
