Georgia Tech faces whistleblower lawsuit accusing university of misappropriating funds

ATLANTA - A former Georgia Tech employee has filed a whistleblower lawsuit against the university after he claims he was disciplined for pointing out misappropriated funds.

The new claim comes from Keith Werle, the managing director of the Business Analytics Center at the Scheller College of Business.

What they're saying:

In his lawsuit against the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia, which was filed earlier this month, Werle claimed that he "frequently uncovered examples of unauthorized charges, unauthorized transfers out of the BAC’s financial accounts, and other "missing" funds, causing numerous issues with his ability to pay his employees, graduate assistants, and others at the BAC."

According to Werle, the school misappropriated more than $250,000 in his first four years in his position. In some cases, he claimed to notice unauthorized charges debited from the center's account in what appeared to be an attempt to hide money so that it wouldn't be forfeited at the end of the financial year.

When he attempted to point out the alleged misappropriations and other payroll issues, he said he received a letter of reprimand for "unprofessional" behavior.

"Defendant did not discipline the people Mr. Werle had caught misappropriating funds and chose to discipline Mr. Werle instead because he was the ‘squeaky wheel,'" the Georgia Tech employee's lawsuit claimed.

After a 2023 audit, Werle claims that the university investigated him for "sham" complaints over his push to stop the misappropriations. In September 2023, Georgia Tech put him on administrative leave and ultimately recommended he be fired

"Defendant would not have terminated Mr. Werle, or subjected him to the other employment discipline set forth above, but for his complaints about financial waste and various violations of state and federal law by Defendant," the lawsuit reads.

Dig deeper:

Werle's lawsuit comes months after the Department of Justice sued the university and an affiliate, claiming the institutions failed to meet cybersecurity requirements in connection with U.S. Department of Defense contracts.

The lawsuit is based on the claims of Christopher Craig and Kyle Koza, two former senior members of Georgia Tech’s cybersecurity compliance team, who filed their own whistleblower lawsuit against the university.

What's next:

Werle is asking for a trial by jury and all damages connected with his termination, including attorneys' fees.