U-Md. looking into theft of gift cards

The University System of Maryland is investigating how $40,700 in gift cards intended for needy families were distributed by University of Maryland-Baltimore's School of Social Work staff and students.

A state audit found that university officials “could not document who received the gift cards or what was purchased with the gift cards,” which were paid for by a federally funded program.

The audit, released in February, found that a university employee with a corporate purchasing card bought the gift cards between July 2006 and June 2008, but there's no record of what happened to the cards.

A university system official said Tuesday that the system has launched an internal audit as part of a routine response to the concerns raised by the Office of Legislative Audits review.

-- Associated Press