The Ohio Office of the Inspector General is collecting and reviewing email files of Ohio University officials as part of an “investigation involving the purchase of 31 Coventry Lane,” OU’s presidential residence.
The Inspector General’s office sought files from 13 university officials, according to a letter from the office received by John Biancamano, OU’s legal counsel, on Jan. 14.
The office intended to analyze the files “using office forensic tools,” determine which files were privileged, and review the remaining files, according to the letter.
After the search, the files will be returned to the university unless information needs to be preserved “as evidence in a potential criminal matter arising from the investigation,” according to the letter.
Following the Inspector General’s Nov. 13 request of university records related to presidential housing, the office has continually been in contact with OU about the requests, according to email records provided to The Post from the university.
The emails also show that the Inspector General’s office arranged on-campus interviews with eight OU employees in January. The interviews included employees from the Division of University Advancement, OU Procurement Services and the Ohio University Foundation.
“We are requesting the interviews be held at a location where the individuals will have the ability to access their computer systems to explain their daily processes and documentation entered into those systems,” a Dec. 22 email from Rebekeh Wolcott, deputy inspector general.
Though the letter mentions an investigation, it is the policy of the Inspector General’s office to neither confirm nor deny the existence of an investigation until one is completed, according to a previous Post report.
The Inspector General’s office gave no comment.
The office first requested records from OU on April 27, 2015 following the university’s decision to lease, not purchase, the new home at 31 Coventry Lane for OU President Roderick McDavis.
OU had announced the university would not purchase the home April 13 following the discovery of a “problematic” verbal agreement made between John Wharton, the home’s owner, and Director of Athletics Jim Schaus.
The Inspector General also requested more expansive records Aug. 3. So far, the university has made all of the records public — though some were partially redacted — except for OU Foundation meeting agendas and minutes, according to a previous Post report.
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