Property Firm Investigated; Cash Missing

A handful of residents with homes under the care of a defunct property management company are out thousands of dollars in rent, police said Thursday.

Police are interviewing owners and employees of Inland Property Management in connection with the missing cash.

“A bunch of people are saying, ‘Hey, what happened to my money,”’ said Coeur d’Alene Police Capt. Carl Bergh.

Attempts to reach Inland managers were unsuccessful.

Four homeowners told police this week they did not receive rent money for March, totaling about $6,000.

The losses could result from bookkeeping errors stemming from the company’s recent sale to Robinson Property Management, police said.

Inland’s new owners have received a dozen other complaints from homeowners, said Robinson Property manager Debbie Johnson.

“Is this a case where there was a misunderstanding, or is this a case where a crime was committed?” Bergh asked. “We don’t know yet.”

But a trust account held by the city of Coeur d’Alene and managed by Inland on behalf of Armstrong Park homeowners has been short at least $1,600 since November 1993, said City Treasurer John Austin.

Inland manages a private water system for Armstrong Park. It collected an extra $10.25 a month from homeowners there to cover the cost of someday connecting to the city’s water system, Austin said.

Gary Lowe, owner of the Armstrong Park water system, said he did not know where the money went. Lowe, who lives out of state, will review city records next week.

No public money is missing, Austin said.