New investigation by city auditor inspects Mayor vehicle use, city staff supervising children

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) -- A recently released investigation report by the Colorado Springs City Auditor details reports of inconsistencies in reporting city vehicle use and the use of staff for non-official child supervision.

The Office of the City Auditor says it received two hotline reports alleging fraud, waste, and abuse involving an elected official. KRDO13 Investigates has learned the elected official in these reports is Colorado Springs Mayor Yemi Mobolade.

This is not the first time KRDO13 Investigates has shared the findings of a report looking into Mayor Mobolade's use of city resources.

In the investigation, the City Auditor examined telematics data, mileage reporting, calendar entries, City policies, and staff interviews. Their review found instances of personal use of a City-owned vehicle and use of staff for non-official child supervision. Overall, the auditor says it identified weaknesses in the internal controls governing personal use of City resources. They recommend strengthening these controls.

The review also identified multiple instances in which City staff supervised the elected official’s children during work hours or official events, wrote the auditor. Since the City or staff does not maintain records of these occurrences, including dates, duration, or the amount of staff time involved, the total impact cannot be quantified, they said.

Although the City’s Personnel Policies manual does not apply to the elected official, the City does have a “Visitors in the Workplace” policy. This policy allows visitors, including family members, in City facilities on a limited basis but requires that visitors not disrupt operations, be escorted when not in public areas, and not be left unattended or left with employees that they are not there to visit.

The auditor writes that supervision of an elected official’s children is not within the scope of City staff job duties, and several employees reported feeling uncertain about expectations when children were present. The auditor reports that establishing clear guidance regarding staff interaction with the elected official’s family members may help prevent confusion.

City Councilman Dave Donelson, who serves on the audit committee, clarified that the report, presented to the committee, represents the City Auditor's independent findings and investigation.

Interviews with seven staff members, conducted between April 15 and June 11, 2026, revealed that all but one had supervised the mayor's children during city events or within the City Administration Building during business hours.

“If you're the boss and you ask someone, hey, do you mind watching watching my, my kids for me? The employee's nervous to tell you. No, I need to be doing my own job,” said City Councilman Donelson.

He added that employees likely worry that such situations could negatively impact their careers or promotion opportunities. Donelson specifically mentioned instances detailed in the report where staff felt compelled to watch the children and did not perform their paid duties. He noted that in one instance in the report, the value of the time dedicated to watching the children was approximately $380.

"He's [the mayor's] getting it, you know, for free from the city. You and I are paying the bill for $380 of babysitting. And the person doing the babysitting and, you know, doesn't want to be doing the babysitting, or they feel awkward to say no, so they're not doing their real job," said Donelson.

The auditor's report looking into fraud, waste and abuse also took a magnifying glass to the mayor's personal use of a city-owned vehicle, finding discrepancies in mileage reporting.

Telematics data from 2024 through 2026 identified three instances of personal travel outside Colorado Springs city limits:

• 143 miles to Denver on Nov. 16, 2024
• 44 miles to Monument on Oct. 25, 2025
• 794 miles to Crested Butte, Ouray and Almont from March 20-25, 2026.

For the trip to Crested Butte, Ouray and Almont, the mayor reported 382 miles and reimbursed the city $276.95, calculated at the IRS rate of $0.725 per mile. However, the telematics data indicated that reimbursement for the full 794 miles should have totaled approximately $575, resulting in an approximate shortfall of $298, according to the auditor.

“The mayor is under-reporting his mileage. It's not a guess,” Donelson said, pointing out that “they have the exact locations of the vehicle on certain days.”

Donelson further stated that it is unfair and lowers tax obligations.

"He's misrepresenting what he's doing with the vehicle. That could be a mistake on his part. I'll call that incompetence. So you get two choices. Is it incompetence? I can't fill these forms out properly. Or is it intentional? Or is it just sloppiness?" questioned Donelson.

For personal travel within city limits, the report compared the mayor's reported personal-use mileage from January through June 2024 with telematics data for the same period. While the mayor reported 384 personal-use miles, leading to an imputed income of $257.28, telematics data identified approximately 690 miles of personal use, according to the report. This difference indicates that an additional 306 personal-use miles should have been reported, amounting to an additional imputed income value of $205, writes the auditor.

A new administrative regulation governing personal use of city-owned vehicles became effective on May 7, 2026, after an earlier recommendation from the Office of the City Auditor.

Following the policy's effective date, telematics data from May 7 through June 7, 2026, revealed approximately 60 miles of personal travel, primarily on weekends, that were not included in the mayor's personal-use mileage report, the auditor found. These additional miles would increase the imputed income for the second quarter of 2026 by approximately $45, according to the report.

The City Auditor recommended strengthening controls around reporting and reconciliation of personal-use vehicle mileage, specifically through the routine use of telematics data, to improve accuracy. The auditor also suggested establishing clear guidance regarding staff interaction with the elected official's family members, proposing that the mayor consider adopting a policy similar to the city's existing “Visitors in the Workplace” policy for employees.

Mayor Mobolade provided KRDO13 with this statement in response to the report.

"I respect the role of the City Auditor and the importance of investigating credible reports of waste, fraud and abuse. Public trust requires transparency, accountability, and clear rules for how City resources are used. 
 
Serving as the mayor and being a good husband and father are my top priorities. As any parent with school-aged children can attest, there are rare occasions for which my children have accompanied me to work functions. I never intended for there to be a perception or expectation that supervising my children was a responsibility of any staff. I continue to use the City vehicle in compliance with City policies, and where the report identifies the need for stronger internal controls, the City has already taken action through a new Administrative Regulation 26-04 to improve clarity, documentation, and accountability. 

The mayor’s role, which is a 24/7 job, requires movement across the city, attendance at public events, emergency availability, and appropriate safety considerations. City vehicle use should be governed by clear policy, and that is exactly why the City has strengthened the rules. I am in compliance with the policy, and if any reimbursement or tax-reporting obligations are identified through the normal reconciliation process, they will be handled appropriately. Moving forward, my team and I will use the telematics to reconcile all reported mileage, as this tool was not something we previously were aware of as part of the reporting process. 

This report raises several concerns about the priorities of our City Auditor, begging the question of the motivation behind the audit and number of hours used to develop this report at the expense of other critical risk-based audits that residents are asking for. 

As of today, more than 1,700 hours of planned audit work remain delayed or backlogged, and our City Auditor is several months behind on key audits that residents and I have asked for, including providing oversight on the CSPD technology implementation as it relates to privacy and civil liberties, how our resources for homelessness outreach are being used, and whether or not the $45 million in Public Safety Sales Tax dollars are being used appropriately. 

My focus remains where it has always been; serving the residents of Colorado Springs and delivering results on the priorities that matter most. I believe City oversight should be directed toward advancing public safety, exercising sound fiscal stewardship, investing in critical infrastructure, and ensuring the responsible use of every taxpayer dollar."

- Colorado Springs Mayor Yemi Mobolade

You can read the full investigation report by the city auditor below.

This is how the Colorado Division of Capital Assets describes telematics: "Imagine a highly intelligent computer in your vehicle that is able to report on nearly every detail — from speed and idling, to fuel use, low tire pressure, and more. This information can mean saving on maintenance costs by better monitoring vehicles, or improving fuel efficiency by learning more about driving habits. All of this describes the universe of telematics, also known as GPS fleet tracking."

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