City Auditor investigation finds former Austin Energy employee funneled nearly $1 million to fictitious and family-linked vendors over six years

A City of Austin Auditor's Office investigative report (December 2025) found that Austin Energy employee Mark Ybarra falsified city credit-card payments to contractors -- some with addresses tied to himself or family, some fictitious -- diverting about $980,000 between 2017 and 2023. Ybarra resigned in 2023 after auditors requested vendor documentation he could not provide, and was indicted on a first-degree felony theft charge by the Travis County District Attorney in August 2025.