| Course | AC465 Fraud and Forensic Accounting |
|---|---|
| Unit | Unit 9 |
| Paper type | Findings report |
| Length | About 770 words, 5 pages double-spaced |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| School | Purdue University Global |
| Program | BS in Accounting |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for AC465 Unit 9
What 47 Invoices Show and What They Do Not: A Unit 9 Findings Report to Counsel on a Sealcoating Vendor
[Student Name]
Purdue University Global
AC465: Fraud and Forensic Accounting
Unit 9 Findings Report
[Instructor Name]
[Date]
Lakeshore Living Communities, its people and every record are composite; the standard, manual and textbook cited are real.
Header
To: Outside counsel, Lakeshore Living Communities From: Forensic accounting team Date: June 2, 2026 Subject: Findings on vendor invoices, January 2024 through February 2026 Attorney work product; drafted for counsel's use in anticipation of litigation.
Summary of Findings
1. The vendor record was created on November 14, 2023 under the maintenance director's user ID (E-03).
2. The vendor's registered address is a residence owned by the director's brother-in-law (E-09).
3. All 47 invoices, totaling $389,270, were approved under the director's credentials (E-04, E-05).
4. Inspection and the regular contractor's job records show no sealcoating at the billed lots for 38 invoices totaling $312,860 (E-07, E-10).
5. Payments to the vendor were deposited to a credit union account held in the brother-in-law's name (E-06).
6. Eleven invoice dates fall on days when temperatures stayed below the product's minimum application temperature of 50 degrees Fahrenheit (E-08).
Scope and Procedures
The team reviewed the vendor master change log and approval log, all 47 invoices and their payments, work orders and community manager logs for each billed community, the regular sealcoating contractor's invoices and crew schedules for the same period, state and county records for the vendor, weather records for each invoice date, and the receiving account's statements produced to counsel. An independent pavement consultant inspected all 29 billed lots without being told which invoices were under review, and seven interviews were scheduled. Six took place; the memorandum for the seventh records the director's decision, on counsel's advice, not to be interviewed.
Basis for Each Finding
The 38 invoices in finding 4 were classified as unsupported only where three sources agreed: the consultant found no sealcoat newer than the regular contractor's last application, the regular contractor's records show no work at that lot on or near the billed date, and no community manager log records a crew on site. The criteria were fixed before the inspections began.
The report states what the records show, who created the vendor, who approved the invoices and where the money went, and leaves to the fact finder whether anyone intended to deceive, because intent is a conclusion no record can establish by itself.
How the Amounts Reconcile
The 47 invoices total $389,270. Thirty-eight, totaling $312,860, meet all three criteria for work not performed. Nine, totaling $76,410, do not. Together they equal the total paid. Of the eleven winter invoices in finding 6, all eleven are among the 38; none of the nine unresolved invoices carries a winter date. The deposits to the credit union account total $389,270, matching the payments to the cent, and the account's statements show withdrawals by check and transfer that the team has not traced further, pending counsel's instructions.
Interview Evidence
The regular contractor's owner stated that he has never subcontracted to or worked with the vendor and does not know its owner (E-10). Two community managers stated that their lots were not sealcoated on the billed dates and that they had raised questions with the maintenance director, who told them the work had been done at night. These statements are reported as given and are not relied on alone for any finding.
Unresolved Amount
Nine invoices totaling $76,410 are not included in the loss figure. Sealcoat exists at those lots, and although the regular contractor's records do not show the work, the consultant could not date the sealcoat precisely enough to rule out the vendor having applied it. These invoices may represent work performed, possibly by a subcontractor. They are listed separately in the schedule for counsel's consideration.
What This Report Does Not Address
The report does not state that any person committed fraud or acted with intent. Fraud requires intent, and intent is a conclusion for a court or other trier of fact. The forensic services standard advises against opinions on such ultimate issues (American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, 2019). The report also does not quantify consequential losses, such as pavement deterioration from skipped maintenance.
Attachments
Schedule A lists all 47 invoices with date, amount, community, classification, and the exhibits supporting each classification. Schedule B is the exhibit index, cross-referenced to the custody log. Findings written as declarative sentences tied to exhibits, without characterizing motives, are the form recommended for fraud examination reports (Association of Certified Fraud Examiners, 2023; Kranacher & Riley, 2019).
References
American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. (2019). Statement on Standards for Forensic Services No. 1. AICPA.
Association of Certified Fraud Examiners. (2023). Fraud examiners manual. ACFE.
Kranacher, M.-J., & Riley, R. A. (2019). Forensic accounting and fraud examination (2nd ed.). Wiley.
The Purdue Global AC465 Unit 9 instructions
Unit 9 of AC465 asks for a written report of investigative findings. Address it to the client or counsel, mark it appropriately and open with a summary of findings written as plain declarative sentences, each tied to exhibits. Describe the scope and procedures so the reader knows what was examined. Explain the basis for any quantification, including criteria fixed before testing. Reconcile the amounts so classified and unresolved items add to the total. Report witness statements as given, without relying on them alone. State any amount left unresolved and why. Include a section on what the report does not address, especially intent, which belongs to a trier of fact. Attach a schedule listing every transaction with its classification and an exhibit index. APA 7 citations to the professional standards belong at the end.
How this AC465 Unit 9 example is built
The sample's header addresses outside counsel and marks the report as work product. Six numbered findings follow, each with exhibit references. Scope lists records reviewed, a blind inspection of 29 lots and scheduled interviews, one declined. The basis section explains the three-source criteria for the 38 invoices. A reconciliation ties $312,860 and $76,410 to the $389,270 paid and notes that all eleven winter invoices fall among the 38. Interview evidence is reported as given. The highlighted sentence explains why the report stops at what records show. The unresolved section explains the nine invoices. A section on what the report does not address cites the forensic services standard on ultimate issues. Schedules and an exhibit index close the report, citing the ACFE manual and Kranacher and Riley.
AC465 Unit 9 rubric: what earns full points
AC465 findings reports are graded on precision, traceability and restraint. Findings should be declarative, specific and tied to exhibits, and graders deduct heavily for words that characterize intent. The scope section must let a reader see exactly how far the work went. Quantification must rest on criteria fixed before testing, and amounts must reconcile. Unresolved items should be reported honestly rather than folded into the loss. Witness statements should be reported as given and corroborated. A section on what the report does not address shows awareness of its limits. Schedules and an exhibit index make every finding verifiable. Professional format and APA 7 citations round out the Purdue Global grade for this report.
Common AC465 Unit 9 mistakes, and how to avoid them
Many Unit 9 reports state that the subject committed fraud or stole funds, conclusions only a fact finder can reach. Others bury findings in narrative so the reader cannot see what was established. Exhibits are not cited. The loss figure includes every invoice paid, even those the evidence does not settle. Criteria for classification are invented after testing. Interview statements are treated as proof. Amounts do not reconcile. If your section's case involves payroll, inventory or expense fraud, our writers can draft the findings, schedule and exhibit index from your file.
Get an AC465 Unit 9 example written to your instructions
Earlier work helps here: if the course built a plan, a log or red flag findings before Unit 9, include them with the case and the rubric so the report rests on the same record. Every finding comes back sourced, the loss is limited to what the evidence reaches, and open questions are listed. Expect it in 24-48h; the first custom report is free. The paper above is an original model document written by our desk, not a submitted student paper and not an official Purdue University Global document.
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AC465 Unit 9 questions, answered
Why exclude the nine invoices from the loss figure?
Because the evidence does not settle them. Sealcoat exists at those lots, and although the regular contractor also documented work there, the records cannot show whether the vendor did any work at all. Including them would overstate what the report can prove and hand an opposing expert an easy target. Excluding them, with the reason stated, makes the 312,860 figure harder to attack.
Can the report say the director committed fraud?
No, and the sample shows why. Fraud includes intent, and intent is a conclusion for a court or other trier of fact, not for the person who assembled the records. The report states what the records establish, such as who created the vendor and where payments went, and leaves the inference to its readers. Graders of this unit's reports tend to reward exactly that restraint.
Can the report follow my own case?
Yes. Share the case file, the prompt, any earlier work the report should build on, and the rubric. Findings are drafted as factual sentences with sources, the loss is limited to what the evidence supports, and a closing section names what the file does not establish. It is coursework analysis and says nothing about any actual dispute.
Where can I find a free AC465 Unit 9 sample paper?
This page holds a complete AC465 Unit 9 findings report to counsel on a composite property manager's sealcoating vendor, with six findings, scope, criteria, a reconciliation, limits and APA 7 references.
How do the AC465 Unit 9 amounts reconcile?
Thirty-eight invoices totaling $312,860 meet all three criteria for work not performed, and nine totaling $76,410 do not. Together they equal the $389,270 paid, which also matches the deposits to the receiving account.