In Carson: Confusing Carsons causes inaccurate information

Al Kramer was surfing the Internet and ran across some startling information: an article reporting that Carson City's general fund account had been hacked into and $450,000 removed by unknown cyberthieves.

Kramer knew it had to be wrong. He wouldn't have had to find out from a news story. He's the city treasurer.

It turns out the incident actually happened in Carson, Calif. Every keystroke the treasurer of that California city made on a laptop computer was monitored by the hacker, who arranged for money to be put in bank accounts in Michigan and North

Carolina.

"We have done things for Carson City that would make it extremely difficult for this to happen," he said. That includes purchasing state-of-the-art software to protect this information, Kramer said about the incident.

Many Web sites have correct versions of the incident that occurred about two weeks ago. Others, however, have erroneous headlines and introductions that refer to "Carson City" as the place where the money was stolen.

The Web site where Kramer had seen an inaccurate story is called Help Net Security. A phone number with a Northern California area code was answered by someone who said he was in Croatia.

"We didn't write it," said Berislav Kucan, marketing director for Help Net Security and several other high-tech publications. "We get our news stories from the wire and the large media outlets."

He said he was surprised there was more than one city with Carson in its name.

Carson, Calif., has a population of slightly less than 90,000 and is south of Los Angeles. It wasn't named after Kit Carson but after one of its early influential residents, John Manuel Carson. Both communities had a place called Carson Mall, but the California city's shopping center was renamed South Bay Pavilion at Carson.

There is confusion about which Carson is which and no wonder. For example, along with Carson City, Nev., there's a Carson City, Mich. And while there is a Carson, Calif., there's also a Carson, Iowa and Carson, Miss. Adding to the confusion is another similarly named place: Fort Carson, Colo.

Carson City, Mich., has a population of 1,200 people and is 45 minutes from Lansing, the state capital.

"We do get some calls from people wanting Carson City, Nev.," said Cindy Schafer, assistant comptroller for the small Midwestern community. "They get the number from information. ... I sort it out."

While it was initially thought the thieves targeting the city in California got away with $450,000, it turns out about only half of the money, roughly $230,000, was successfully moved, said Lt. Rocky Costa, with the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department. He also is involved with a multiagency law enforcement organization that targets cybercrimes.

While "the octopus has grown arms," Costa said. "I think it's a solvable case."

The investigation is continuing as authorities in California do computer forensics and track down information about the accounts where the money was transferred.

"I'm glad it wasn't us," Kramer said. "But I'm not laughing."

The Nevada Attorney General's office has rejected former Lyon County Manager Donna Kristaponis' open-meeting law complaint against the Lyon County commissioners.

In a written opinion, the office applied two Nevada Supreme Court rulings in determining that the meetings and conversations among the commissioners before the Feb. 15 meeting when Kristaponis was fired did not necessarily constitute a violation of the law.

Kristaponis said the ruling didn't come as a surprise to her, and that she does not plan any kind of appeal.

"There were some factual things in it that bothered me," she said, "I respect the law, but I also respect common sense."

Kristaponis had alleged a violation of the state's open meeting law because of an item on the Feb. 15 meeting agenda to hire an interim manager, and that Commissioner Bob Milz had given a statement to the Nevada Appeal published Feb. 13 indicating he knew in advance who would replace Kristaponis.

Kristaponis had interpreted the statement as evidence of improper meetings among commissioners.

The attorney general's office said the investigation found that Milz and Commissioner Don Tibbals met with Lyon County District Attorney Bob Auer on Feb. 6. Auer said the meeting was held to review county issues since he was recently elected.

During the meeting Milz brought up the possible firing of Kristaponis and Auer agreed to draft the notice to Kristaponis required by law.

Tibbals told the attorney general's office that he was unaware the issue would be brought up and had not discussed the county manager's removal with Milz before this meeting.

The investigation found that it was Auer that suggested including the agenda item about hiring an interim manager.

The statement indicated once the issue of the interim manager was placed on the agenda, Milz contacted Commission Chairman Phyllis Hunewill about possible candidates.

Hunewill told the attorney general's office that once she saw the agenda, she contacted county staff to see if any were interested in being county manager, but none were. Milz told the investigators that he contacted Bob Hadfield at the suggestion of county Human Services Director Edrie LaVoie, who filled in as county manager in the past. He said Hadfield had agreed to be interim county manager if needed.

According to the report, Hunewill said she learned of the agenda item after being contacted by an Appeal reporter, but also said the previous day she spoke with Auer, who informed her about the meeting with Tibbals and Milz and the drafting of the notice.

Kristaponis disputed an item in the report that indicated she canceled a planned mediation between her and the commission.

She said she had Human Resources Director Steven Englert cancel the mediation at the direction of the commission, and that Englert had informed mediator Ruth Urban that the issue would be before the commission.

Commissioners voted 3-2 on Feb. 15 to fire Kristaponis, then immediately voted to hire Hadfield as interim county manager. Hunewill, Milz and Tibbals voted to oust Kristaponis while Larry McPherson and LeRoy Goodman were opposed.

Hadfield was hired as interim county manager at the same meeting.