Audit Finds Millions of Dollars Mismanaged After Joplin Tornado

An audit of Joplin found enough mismanagement over its hiring of a master developer following a May 2011 tornado that devastated the southwest Missouri city that the findings have been turned over to authorities, the state auditor said Tuesday. The city entered into master developer agreements with Wallace Bajjali Development Partners, of Sugar Land, Texas, after the 2011 tornado that killed 161 people and destroyed much of Joplin. Missouri Auditor Nicole Galloway said "key selection and agreement documents appeared to be written to benefit the company, and did not adequately protect the city" and resulted in nearly $1.5 million spent by the city with no real estate redevelopment services provided."