Alabama A&M University Chief Operating Officer Kevin Rolle resigned from the university last week as part of a guilty plea bargain for a misdemeanor forgery charge.
AL.com reports that Rolle created a receipt for nearly $6,000 in moving expenses associated with his hiring, which was paid by the school as a part of his compensation package. Prosecutors dropped theft charges against Rolle, who collected more than $200,000 in salary while on administrative leave from the university.
The charges against Rolle were a part of a larger tussle between the university and Alabama Governor Robert Bentley over a university audit which produced 14 minor findings and created a firestorm of controversy for the school.
The inquiry was a part of a growing culture of auditing for Alabama A&M and Alabama State University over a two-year period, during which neither school was found guilty of gross financial misconduct, or wrongdoing comparable to incidents at Auburn University during the same period.
Rolle faces a year in jail pending the decision of a circuit court judge.
