24. An internal auditor should be concerned about the possibility of fraud if
A. Cash receipts, net of the amounts used to pay petty cash-type expenditures, are deposited in the bank daily.
B. The monthly bank statement reconciliation is performed by the same employee who maintains the perpetual inventory records.
C. The accounts receivable subsidiary ledger and accounts payable subsidiary ledger are maintained by the same person.
D. One person, acting alone, has sole access to the petty cash fund (except for a provision for occasional surprise counts by a supervisor or auditor).
Answer (A) is correct.
REQUIRED: The reason an internal auditor should be concerned about the possibility of fraud.
DISCUSSION: Paying petty cash expenditures from cash receipts facilitates the unauthorized removal of cash before deposit. All cash receipts should be deposited intact daily. Petty cash expenditures should be handled through an imprest fund.
Answer (B) is incorrect. The monthly bank reconciliation should not be performed by a person who makes deposits or writes checks, but the inventory clerk has no such responsibilities.
Answer (C) is incorrect. There is no direct relationship between the transactions posted to the accounts receivable and accounts payable subsidiary ledgers; having the same person maintain both does not create a control weakness.
Answer (D) is incorrect. To establish accountability for petty cash, only one person should have access to the fund.