Prosecutor: Fired NDSU official won't be charged

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — A North Dakota State University official who was fired for pocketing more than $6,000 in extra travel expenses won't be prosecuted.

Upper Great Plains Transportation Institute director Gene Griffin has agreed to pay back the money and leave his job by year's end.

Cass County prosecutor Tristan Van De Streek says it would be tough to convict Griffin of stealing the money when NDSU is letting him keep his job until December. He's been given time to work on some projects.

An audit showed Griffin claimed payments for the same travel expenses both from NDSU and the school's private foundation. Over three years the questioned amount was more than $6,000.

Griffin told investigators he thought he was entitled to the money “as a benefit of work-related travel.”

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