(The Center Square) – State Auditor Pat McCarthy’s Office was warned by at least two whistleblowers last year that there was alleged theft at the youth detention facility Echo Glen, which houses girls and women, along with boys, records obtained by The Center Square show.
The Center Square recently reported that Department of Children, Youth, and Families Secretary Tana Senn had been directly notified of alleged ‘major theft’ occurring at the facility that was covered up by employees working there.
When contacted for comment on the story, SAO told The Center Square that “we have not received any information from DCYF regarding a loss of public funds or resources; we don’t have an open case in that regard.” However, the statement did not mention that SAO had been contacted by whistleblowers, which The Center Square found through a public records request.
The first whistleblower, Anna Sotelo, contacted SAO in June 2025 with a report alleging that between January-March 2025, the facility’s food service budget was exceeded by $57,000 due to purchases made a state employee.
“The nature and scale of the overspending, combined with multiple procedural violations, suggest a pattern of negligence and possible misuse of public resources,” the report stated.
Among the allegations is that taxpayer funds were inappropriately spent on items such as kombucha, specialty drinks, coffee, as well as more than 23 pounds of yeast.
“This amount of yeast poses a high risk for misuse (e.g., pruno) and is not allowed on site,” the report states. “It is unknown how the yeast was…documented in inventory.” Pruno is a wine inmates brew with fruit provided with their meals.
The second whistleblower, Dave Huffman, contacted Special Investigations Program Manager for Whistleblowers Erin Anderson that same month via phone. In a voicemail, he said “I have some information I think you’d be interested in” regarding an Echo Glen investigation.
Huffman later contacted Senn directly and met with her several times.
The Center Square reached out to the State Auditor’s Office requesting an interview to discuss the records, but did not receive a response by time of publication so it is not clear what, if any, steps auditors took in response to the whistleblower tips.