| Ticket Taker Arrested At DeSoto Speedway | by Jack Smith
 A money-grabbing scheme apparently ended for Lanny Roger Sockwell, a Sarasota resident, at the conclusion of the races Saturday night at DeSoto Speedway. The 58-year-old back gate ticket taker was arrested by Manatee County Sheriff's Department and charged with a Scheme to Defraud, which is a felony in the State of Florida.
According to owner John Sarppraicone, Sockwell was under video surveillance for at least two weeks prior to the arrest. Reports from the Sheriff's Department indicate that after the arrest Sockwell admitted to taking $8,000 to $10,000 from the track over a 2-3 year period.
"The defendant facilitated this ongoing course of criminal conduct by accumulating admission tickets from patrons who were not issued a ticket after paying the defendant. The patrons, who were not familiar with DeSoto Speedway admission rules, were allowed entry without a ticket." according to the arresting officer Tim Eason.
He allegedly would later accept payment from patrons and issue them a non-sequenced ticket from a prior week's race. On the night of his arrest Sheriff's officials indicated Sockwell had taken $200 from the till during the evening.
Sockwell could not be reached for comment, but at the time of his arrest he listed his occupation as Pastor of the Reform Community Church in Venice, Florida.
"We knew something was wrong and had to figure out how he was doing it", Sarppraicone stated on Sunday. "With the help of the police he was caught red-handed."
Todd Freed, a Certified Public Accountant with offices in Bradenton who has audited many large businesses and has studied race track's finances for years, said "track owners must departmentalize all their track activities with good record keeping, the track doesn't just take x dollars to the bank but must know where all of the money came from."
"Knowing how much came which gate or food, beverages, tires and gas and having a means of knowing if the amounts are correct are vital, because the cash is flying."
Freed summed up the problem facing race tracks this way, "Heavily cash oriented businesses do not do a good job of accounting for their money, too many owners of businesses can become happy with the receipts and be shorted without even knowing."
Meanwhile Sockwell, who is also charged with a misdemeanor count of Petit Theft, is scheduled to appear in court on June 21st.
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