Court date set in state embezzlement case

Nevada's former head of cyber-security will appear May 30 in Carson City Justice Court to face charges of theft, embezzlement, attempted misappropriation of state money and falsifying records.

Randy Potts was arrested Monday and released on his own recognizance.

Department of Information Technology Director Terry Savage said Potts is being terminated as head of security. Effective immediately, he said, DOIT Deputy Director Mark Blomstrom will take over the Office of Information Security.

Savage said he will handle those responsibilities while a search is conducted to find a permanent replacement for Potts.

The May 30 hearing is Potts' initial appearance on the charges. He will be arraigned before Justice of the Peace Robey Willis and a preliminary hearing will be at a later date.

He could receive up to five years in prison on each of the four counts in the criminal complaint.

Potts is accused of falsifying records to justify a trip to Colorado, reportedly to attend a multi-state homeland security meeting on computer security. When he returned from the trip, he filed expense claims totaling $1,757. But, officials say, there was no such conference on those dates in Colorado. The meeting detailed in the flier Potts used to justify the trip actually occurred in Washington state during April, not Colorado during November.

Savage, who approved the original trip, said he is also taking steps to make sure nothing like that happens in his agency again. He said that in the future, all trip agendas will be verified in advance by DOIT's fiscal unit.

Blomstrom, he said, has a long, distinguished career in state technical service which makes him an ideal choice to take over Potts' duties until a successor is found.

• Contact reporter Geoff Dornan at gdornan@nevadaappeal.com or 687-8750.