By David Rotenstein
NKyTribune reporter
The FBI is investigating alleged financial crimes in the City of Florence government.
According to a press release distributed Jan. 27, the city requested the federal investigation after discovering what it described as “revenue diversion activities within a specific revenue stream.” The release noted that city officials had approached the law enforcement agency.
City officials are referring all inquiries to an external communications firm while the investigation is ongoing.
Meanwhile, city council members were caught off guard by the press release, which went out after a brief closed session during the Jan. 27 business meeting.
“That’s the first we heard about it,” Florence City Council member Lesley Chambers told the NKyTribune.
City council member Angie Cable confirmed that the city’s elected officials were kept in the dark until Tuesday. Cable thinks that a question she asked in the Jan. 13 council meeting spurred the press release, which included information about the city requesting an extension from the Kentucky Department of Local Government for submitting the annual audit.
“I questioned why we hadn’t had the audit yet already,” Cable said. “I was told that it occurs around November.”
This isn’t the first time that Florence’s finances have been under a microscope. In 2002, Florence Finance Director Ronald Epling was arrested and subsequently pleaded guilty of embezzling $2.8 million from the city. Additional charges were pending against Epling when he died in 2003 after serving less than a year into a 16-year prison term.
Epling’s crime came to light after an external auditor discovered discrepancies in Florence’s books.
Linda Chapman worked for the accounting company and in 2003 she became Florence’s finance director, taking Epling’s position. Chapman retired in 2024 and was replaced by current finance director Jason Lewis. Chapman was hailed as a hero in the Epling case and multiple sources who spoke on background described her character as unimpeachable.
The press release mentioned a 2025 reorganization of the city’s finance department in 2025. According to sources not authorized to speak to the press, those changes included hiring a junior-level bookkeeper and other staffing changes done at the discretion of the administration.
Though shielded by assertions that city officials cannot comment because of the ongoing investigation, Cable worries that the lack of transparency can erode trust in local government. “How can I defend my city and do what I need to do,” Cable said. “I’ve had a lot of people reach out, ask questions and I can’t talk about it … Everything that was provided to us is everything that was in that press release and nothing more.”