Case BC20-06-0266 Printed on December 14, 2020

Status Approved
Report Type Patrol
Primary Officer Matthew Cline
Investigator Matthew Cline
Reported At 01/01/17 00:01
Incident Date 01/01/17 00:01 - 01/01/20 23:59
Incident Code THEFT : THEFT / LARCENY
Location BENTON COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE, BENTONVILLE, AR 72712
Zone Northwest

Disposition Closed - Death of Offender

Disposition Date/Time 11/25/20 09:47
Review for Gang Activity Not Applicable
Primary Narrative By Matthew Cline, 09/25/20 13:31
On 6/28/2020,​ I was contacted by Eric Smith. Smith is the fire chief for three volunteer fire departments in the
southeast district of the county (Hickory Creek,​ HWY 94 east,​ and Pleasure Heights FD). Smith met me in CID at the
Sheriff’s Office to discuss his complaint.
​
Smith told me he had taken over as the fire chief for the departments around February of 2020. Prior to that,​ he had
been the assistant fire chief under then fire chief,​ Marc Trollinger (Referred to henceforth as “Marc”). Smith told me he
had also been the assistant Benton County Fire Marshal when Marc was the Fire Marshal. Smith and Marc have
known each other for many years.
​
Smith told me it is customary when a new Chief takes over,​ the new Chief ​completes an audit of the finances for the
councils of all three Departments. It is worth noting all three volunteer fire departments are overseen by a council and
also by the State of Arkansas as they receive state funds every year. Smith told me as he was conducting the audits,​
he found multiple discrepancies. For instance,​ there are very few receipts that show any expenses. Smith told me
everything was in order until early 2018. In 2018,​ there were quite a few unauthorized expenditures on the FD credit
card and checking accounts.
​
Smith told me every purchase must have a corresponding receipt for audit purposes. Also,​ any purchase over $1,​000
USD must be approved by the respective council that oversees that fire department/account. It is worth noting that after
reviewing the minutes I got from the fire departments,​ I found no authorizations that would match any of the purchases
I uncovered throughout my investigation. ​The chief of the agencies receives a stipend and,​ if approved,​ a Christmas
bonus. Those amounts are as follows:

1. Hickory Creek FD- $3,​600 USD ​

2. Pleasure Heights FD- $3,​600 USD
3. HWY 94 East FD- $0

​
The fire chief may write himself checks equal to this amount throughout the year from each account,​ respectively. A
Christmas bonus is authorized by each department,​ each year.
​
Smith said when he took over,​ Marc had not had a meeting with the councils in over a year,​ ​so no-one had any idea of
the financial situation of each department. Smith brought in bank records from all three accounts to show me examples
he had found of theft. During Marc’s tenure as chief,​ he was the only person to have access to the accounts and was
the only person to have a check book,​ and/or credit card for those accounts.
​
At first glance,​ I could see major problems with the spending on the accounts. ​There are charges for Amazon.com,​
Sam’s Club,​ Walmart,​ Academy Sports,​ Southwest Airlines,​ cash withdrawals,​ and Zale’s jewelry. Looking at just these
purchases,​ I asked Smith if there was any reason for the Chief’s position to spend $2,​973.71 USD at Zale’s. I was able
to confirm the purchase at Zales ​as ​$2,​973.71 USD on a mens wedding band and a female engagement set. ​Smith told
me under no circumstances would it be proper to spend that amount at ​Zales,​ and even if it were,​ there would have to
be a receipt for the purchase,​ and there isn’t one. In fact,​ there are no receipts for any of these purchases. Smith told
me there was also no reason to shop at Walmart and Sam’s,​ because they do not stock food at the fire departments,​ as

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there are no firefighters living there. Smith did say that twice a year,​ a purchase to these places COULD be authorized
due to a chili cook-off ​and a pancake breakfast the fire departments put on for a fundraiser,​ but it has been his
experience that all of the meat for the fundraisers are always donated by Tyson Food and the other items are donated
by Dollar General and Harp’s. It is also worth noting that the occurrences at Walmart,​ Sam’s,​ and Amazon are repeated
monthly in the statements I found.
​
Smith gave me the financial records he had procured from the respective financial institutions and went through
multiple pages of them with me. Smith also showed me copies of checks,​ written by Marc,​ to Marc,​ from 2019. In only
2019,​ from only one account,​ Marc wrote himself over $40,​000 USD in checks which were all deposited into his
personal Arvest account. Taking into consideration his stipend and his Christmas bonus,​ he stole approximately $36,​
000 USD in funds from one of the accounts in 2019. Smith also told me there were multiple checks showing
“Reimbursement” in the memo line for various services to fire trucks or the buildings,​ themselves. ​ Smith was able to
confirm each of these were fraudulent as the services were never completed,​ and there are no documents to back-up
any reimbursements.
​
I began investigating this case by sending subpoenas to all financial institutions involved (First Security Bank,​ First
National Bank,​ and Arvest). I also notified my command staff and Prosecutor Cearley. I requested the aid of the state
auditors due to the fire departments being subject to state audits because of the state funds they each receive yearly.
The request for assistance was granted. ​
​
Marc Trollinger has multiple accounts with Arvest. Some are shared with is wife,​ Amy Trollinger (Referred to
henceforth as “Amy”),​ and some accounts are in only Marc’s name. After looking into Marc’s financial records,​ I
confirmed that all the checks he wrote to himself did go into his personal accounts.
​
I contacted Academy Sports corporate and provided them with Marc’s information and transaction information. They
were able to populate receipts of each occurrence and sent them to me. I have listed examples of purchases made by
Marc Trollinger using a Fire Department credit card during the same month. There ​were seven (7) occurrences where
Marc Trollinger used a fire department card at different Academy Sports locations totaling $1,​483.92 USD. ​Marc
purchased ammunition,​ firearms accessories,​ and clothing. It is worth noting that after going over my findings with
Chief Smith,​ we could find no legal reason for any of these purchases,​ found that none of these items were given to the
fire department,​ and there were no receipts or documentation to justify any of these purchases. ​
​
I found purchases to:

“Grunt-Style”,​ which is a veteran owned clothing company

“Lululemon”,​ which is a women’s athletic attire company
“Homeaway”,​ a vacation rental company
Casey’s
County Line Liquor
“Ron Jon Surf Shop” in Orange Beach,​ Alabama,​ a clothing chain
“Big O tires”
United Airlines
“Cheers” liquor store
Amazon.com
Verizon wireless
Blue Top liquor
Under Armor direct
Wal-Mart
Sams Club
Zale's ​
Lowe's

​
​
​and more businesses that have no fire related purposes. ​
​
​
I completed subpoenas for the two financial institutions ​that the three fire departments used during the time period ​in
question. These were sent through the prosecuting attorney's office. I also completed requests through Walmart and ​
Sam's club. ​After receiving returns on the subpoenas and the requests,​ I found major discrepancies in the fire
department's accounts. Trollinger had been steadily spending ​large sums of money at Walmart and Sam's club

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monthly. Marc also was issuing himself personal checks for thousands of dollars a month using the three bank
accounts he controlled. During this time period,​ Marc Trollinger was the only person with access to these accounts. I
spoke to the current fire chief and other board members who all told me that Marc would tell them that the accounts
were fine and then in 2019,​ Marc refused to discuss the accounts ​and would never attend the council meetings. When
the councils finally demanded to see the financial documents,​ Marc resigned. ​
​
Based on records obtained throughout the investigation,​ it appears ​Marc Trollinger stole more than $50,​000 USD from
the fire department accounts. The funds were transferred to his personal accounts,​ and/or spent directly from the
accounts using his assigned bank cards. ​
​
After reviewing the supplied documents from Walmart corporate,​ I can say that Trollinger ​fraudulently spent the
following amounts at ​Walmart and Sam's club based on the types of purchases made by Trollinger and the lack of any
authorizations or receipts.
​
Walmart- $3,​043.81 USD was spent by Trollinger ​from 2018-2019 on food and home goods not pertaining to fire
operations.
Sam's Club- $2,​479.28 USD was spent by Trollinger from 2018-2019 on food and home goods not pertaining to fire
operations.
​
​
It is worth noting,​ at the time of this report,​ The state Auditors office and I are still investigating theft from the County by
Marc Trollinger ​during his employment by Benton County. I expect the results of that investigation in early 2021. ​
​
On 7-20-2020,​ I contacted Marc Trollinger to request he come in for an interview. Marc didn't answer my calls
throughout the day,​ so I sent Marc a text message stating who I was and that I needed him to call me ASAP. Marc
returned my call at approximately 1530. Marc asked what I needed and I explained that I was investigating the Fire
Department accounts and I needed him to come to the sheriff's office and speak to me. Marc's voice began to break
while speaking and asked what I meant and then told me he didn't know if he could be any help. I told Marc that he and
I both knew why he needed to come in,​ and it was important for him to come to CID and tell me his side of the story.
Marc asked if he was going to jail and I told him it wasn't necessarily my intention to arrest him,​ but it was imperative to
hear any explanations he might offer for the missing funds. Marc told me he could come in at 1500 hours on 7-21-
2020. ​
​
On 7-21-2020 at approximately 1500 hours,​ I called Marc's cell and got no response. I tried him again at 1530 hours.
After not getting a response,​ I ​decided to proceed with a probable cause arrest on Marc. ​A short time later,​ I was
called ​and notified that Arkansas State Police ​were working a fatality collision on I-49 where Marc Trollinger was the
sole vehicle occupant. I spoke to the on-scene trooper who told me he recovered Marc's wallet from his pocket and
was confident it was him that was driving. The trooper explained that Marc's vehicle was traveling north on I-49 when
witnesses said that his vehicle exited the roadway,​ without ever braking,​ and struck a bridge embankment. ​
​
I immediately notified my command staff of the collision. Based on the death of Marc,​ I have no other suspects to
prosecute and this matter will be closed by "Death of offender". The audit assistance we had for the Fire Department ​
side of the investigation was halted by the Prosecutor's Office due to the death of the offender,​ so I was unable to get
an official count of money stolen. ​
​
Nothing further at this time.
​
Detective Matthew Cline.
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