BALTIMORE (Map, News) - A Baltimore City Community College employee used an unauthorized work credit card to make “numerous questionable” purchases, including a digital camera, two video game systems, video games and DVD players, a new audit reveals.

A college manager charged $81,725 on an unauthorized credit card account from August 2004 to August 2007 and made $7,250 worth of “questionable purchases” that the employee identified as student prizes but auditors said they couldn’t find the students, according to a state audit released Tuesday.

State auditors recommended that if the college determines the purchases were fraudulent, school officials should refer the matter to the criminal division of the state Attorney General’s Office.

“We were advised by BCCC that the aforementioned items were awarded to students as prizes during certain school-sponsored events; however, BCCC was unable to document the specific students to whom prizes were given or the related events,” auditors wrote.

“This employee used the card to purchase a digital camera costing $799 and two electronic entertainment game consoles costing $449 each, as well as numerous other consumer electronics items, such as DVD players and video games.”

In response to the findings, the college promised to perform an internal review and investigate the credit card in question and develop a process to identify and document all students who receive an award worth more than $50, wrote Carolane Williams, college president, in a letter to auditors.

kvolkmann@baltimoreexaminer.com