The audit report details the Town of Cary's spending from January 2024 through December 2025, highlighting high-end meals, travel expenses, hotel cancellation fees and more than 60,000 town Visa card transactions totaling more than $24 million.
State Auditor Dave Boliek said much of the spending occurred under former Town Manager Sean Stegall.
"He was enabling the excessive spending," Boliek said. "The culture was also supported by an abundance of Town visa cards."
READ THE FULL REPORT
The investigation by the town first came to light in November 2025 when Cary town leaders placed Sean Stegall on paid administrative leave after questions were raised about the town's spending. Stegall resigned in December 2025.
The more than 2,600-page report details what investigators say was public money spent in ways that appear excessive.
Procurement card use scrutinized
The audit found that procurement cards, known as "P-Cards," were issued to more than half of Cary employees.
The report compares that figure with Charlotte, North Carolina's largest city, where about 10% of employees have a P-Card. Cary is the state's seventh-largest municipality.
State audit reveals how former town manager used public funds
"The town routinely spends large amounts of money on meals that is far beyond what is typical," Boliek said.
Meals, Travel and 'Dancing Queens'
According to the report, auditors identified expenses ranging from $120 rib-eye steaks to $1,600 spent on 10 pairs of custom Ray-Ban sunglasses for council members for a ribbon-cutting event.
The audit also states that Stegall booked a penthouse during a conference trip and allegedly lost the receipt. The four-night stay cost more than $3,400.
"Not everything is on the town credit card, and what our team found is a lot of those expenses were not backed up by invoices or receipts, and so that creates an accountability problem," Boliek said.
Auditors additionally flagged a $733 executive van used to transport attendees about 12 miles to a holiday dinner.
The report found the town spent more than $121,000 on video production for its 2024 retreat in Wilmington, including a 28-minute documentary shown at the retreat titled "Dancing Queens - A Case Study."
"Are government officials doing things with taxpayer dollars that benefit the community?" Boliek said.
"The spending exposed in the Town of Cary must be addressed with greater oversight and accountability," said State Auditor Dave Boliek. "Public dollars being thrown around carelessly while taxes are being raised only creates distrust in government. This report brings spending to light and shows a true accounting of where tax dollars go in Cary. The public has a right to be frustrated, and hopefully this will result in much-needed financial restraint and discipline in the future."
Other Findings
"Investigators say they identified 'excessive food purchases or meals with no clear business purpose."
- Thousands of dollars in hotel stays
- Councilmember Lori Bush's tuition, which she later repaid.
- One million dollars used for land purchases that councilmembers weren't informed of.
- $65,000 paid to a ghostwriter for a book about former town manager Sean Stegall's management style
- Annual car allowances of nearly $10,000 for councilmembers.
- Dinner expenses including two $120 20-oz ribeye steaks and a $4,164 dinner for Town Council.
- $1600 spent on Ray-Ban sunglasses for Town councilmembers stamped CARY.
Town responds as investigation continues
Cary's response that's included in the audit: "The work of the OSA and others has helped us identify gaps in oversight, process, and culture. And while these concerns are largely rooted in the former Town Manager's actions, we recognize that, as an organization, we have the responsibility to understand what happened, identify how we can strengthen the systems that failed to prevent it, and ensure our practices reflect the standards our employees and community expect."
Last year, the state auditor says a forensic review found potential fraud and possible criminal activity.
The Wake County District Attorney, Lorrin Freeman, also requested a separate criminal investigation earlier this year. Freeman says that the investigation remains open and her office will review the report before commenting.
"We are in the process of reviewing the State Auditor's report, which was just released. Many of the issues identified are within the scope of our ongoing criminal investigation. Our work will be centered on identifying areas of mismanagement that also may be violations of the criminal law. Not all mismanagement constitutes crimes. We appreciate the work of the State Auditor's Office and the ongoing cooperation of the town of Cary's officials," Freeman said in a statement to ABC11.
"Whenever there is an ongoing criminal investigation, there's always the possibility of potential charges," Boliek said.
WATCH | State Auditor's full news conference
NC auditor's office releases report on former town manager's spending: Full Newser
On Thursday evening, the Cary Town Council and Town Manager Russ Overton held a news conference to address the massive report.
Mayor Harold Weinbrecht said the report gave the Town a clearer picture of what was happening under the tenure of the former town manager. Most of which he says he didn't know about.
"It was horrifying," Weinbrecht said. "A lot of the problems in my mind were controlling information. He was a master at making sure he had information from staff, and he had the information from council."
The mayor also addressed the concern that the former town manager's alleged mismanagement of funds is the cause of a higher property tax rate
"All the damage that has been done with the extra expenses has minimal impact on the tax rate," he said. "Those expenditures, extravagant expenses. What has a bigger impact was in the information he withheld from us. We haven't hired a police officer in ten years, and he kept telling us we are fine, we are fine."
Moving forward, the town council has already made moves to address oversight and transparency. A recently passed budget will add an auditor and two additional finance staff members.
Residents were also chagrined at the findings.
"I worked too hard to put up with this," said Paul Allen.
Allen, a longtime Cary resident, said he was upset about the details in the state auditor's report that highlight millions of dollars of extravagant spending on his dime as a taxpayer.
"I think it's a waste of money," Allen said. "The fact that they spent $1,600 on custom Ray-Ban glasses that they gave away. With the Cary town logo. That's ridiculous."
Dan Pike, another Cary resident, hopes to see improvement.
I think we will see change," Pike said. "But as they stated this evening, it all is in a process. And I think this time next year we'll see things much, much different."
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