A criminal investigation has been launched after an audit of the Washington County Clerk of Courts Office revealed that some 96-thousand-dollars was missing. Washington County Controller Mike Namie says the annual audit uncovered twenty-four missing deposits totaling $96,716 dollars dating back to the start of 2018. Washington County Commissioners announced the finding prior to Wednesday’s agenda meeting, saying that the court and the Pennsylvania State Police were contacted and that a complete criminal investigation of the matter is underway. Clerk of Courts Frank Scandale is on vacation this week, but WJPA News reached out to him via Facebook Messenger and he replied with this statement: “I try to run the office like an efficient business and sometimes best practices must be revised and revisited; however, I categorically deny that any wrong-doing was committed in this matter. I welcome any investigation that may take place and I intend to fully cooperate with the same.” Namie says his audit also shows that the Clerk of Courts Office made incorrect deposits to bank accounts and did not always make the deposits on a daily basis. Namie says there is no timetable for the investigation, but did emphasize that everyone who completed a transaction with the Clerk of Courts Office during the audit period was credited. Scandale, a Democrat, who is seeking a second term in office and who ran unopposed on the Democratic ticket in the May Primary Election told WJPA News that reports of his plans to withdraw his name from the November General Election are not true and that he will continue to seek re-election.