SOLEDAD, Calif. – Rupi Boyd had been superintendent of the Soledad Unified School District since 2013.

But when asked by the media in 2016 about a recent state audit of district finances showing “clear violations of school district policies governing spending and reporting by top administrators,” Boyd responded like she was new to the job.

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“Even before I got here our bills were not being paid on time,” she was quoted as saying in June, 2016 by TheCalifornian.com. “Our water was being shut off. Our credit cards were being declined.

We have done the same procedures that the district has followed for the past 10 years. It’s not something new that’s happened.”

But the county school superintendent said the Soledad district had an “exemplary financial record” before Boyd’s arrival, according to the news service.

Even if Boyd is correct about faulty financial procedures left over from the past, why didn’t she do something to address those problems in her three years on the job?

Suddenly, faced with the results of the troubling audit, Boyd seemed ready to spring into action.

“We need to bring this district into the 21st century of business practices,” she was quoted as saying by TheCalifornian.com.

But it was too late for that.

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The results of the state audit prompted Monterey County Schools Superintendent Nancy Kotowski to contact the district attorney’s office in June, 2016.

The DA responded by announcing there will be an investigation to determine “if proof beyond a reasonable doubt exists that any person in authority in the district misappropriated public funds,” according to the news report.

“The system has broken down, policy was not being followed,” Kotowski told the Soledad school board, according to the news service. “We’re hoping to work together on what needs to occur.”

One resident told the Soledad school district that Boyd had been a disaster for the district.

“This lady has come in like the Vikings coming in to the monasteries in France,” the resident said, according to KSBW.com. “She’s ransacked this whole place.”

In July the Soledad school board voted 5-0 to place Boyd on administrative leave while the investigation continued, according to KSBW.com. She resigned on Nov. 1.

According to the state audit, “Both information obtained during interviews and a review of transactions support assertions that the district’s administrators use their occupations and influence over business transactions to deliberately misuse or misapply the district’s resources and assets for personal benefit.”

“Meals were frequently reimbursed for amounts exceeding the district’s approved per diem rate. The district’s per diem for meals is $7 for breakfast, $10 for lunch and $20 for dinner. The audit found breakfast charges of $34 per person and dinners exceeding $50 per person. It also found purchases of alcohol and deserts, and a tip of more than 40 percent at one meal.”

The audit found that the district had no policy for use of the four credit cards issued to administrators, including Boyd. That might have led to trouble.

“The volume and content of transactions reviewed clearly indicate that the cards are used to bypass the district’s established purchasing and travel procedures for expenditures initiated primarily by administrators,” the audit said.

Among many other things, the credit cards were used to make purchases from QVC, a television-based home shopping network, as well as “excessive and nonessential purchases of food and meals,” the audit said.

“District credit cards are used extensively for all travel costs for administrators and board members. Expenditures for meals with travel frequently exceeded established per diem rates, lacked detailed receipts and included meals for individuals accompanying the cardholders,” the audit said.

There were also charges on the credit cards for “travel costs for nonemployee family members,” according to TheCalifornian.com.

The credit cards were also used to purchase computers, Ipads and cameras without the knowledge of the district’s technology department. Employees from that department who inquired about the purchases were treated with “aggressive contempt and refusal,” the audit said.

“Using asset tracking software, the technology director was able to locate at least one device in use by a relative of the superintendent … in Southern California,” the audit stated.

Several district financial officer reportedly expressed concerns to Boyd, to no avail.

“The audit stated that under Boyd, there have been five different CBOs, or chief business officials,” TheCalifornian.com reported. “Each of them, as well as other staff, expressed concern regarding the superintendent’s practice of circumventing established operating procedures, internal controls and policy.”