BRADENTON — The Manatee County Inspector General has released two investigative reports after the recent completion of investigations into two separate and unrelated matters—one involving a complaint of alleged misconduct by a manager at the county’s Convention and Visitors Bureau and the other involving METV and payments it received from the county government.
In a complaint received by the Inspector General’s Office in December 2024, it was alleged that the then-interim manager of the Bradenton Area Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB)—a department of the Manatee County Government—abused his position and defrauded Manatee County when he failed to pay for a personal family photo shoot held at the Powel Crosley Estate.
Based on the findings of its investigation, the Inspector General concluded that the allegation of employee misconduct was “substantiated.”
A separate complaint submitted to the Inspector General earlier this year alleged that Manatee Education Television Consortium, Inc. (METV) was being paid by Manatee County under “false pretenses” due to its non-profit status having been revoked by the Internal Revenue Service due to the failure to file the required Form 990-series.
Unlike the investigation into misconduct by a county employee, the results of the investigation into payments to METV were not as straightforward. Based on information obtained and reviewed during the course of the investigation, the Inspector General concluded that the allegation was “partially substantiated” and “partially unfounded.”
BACVB Employee Misconduct Investigation
The county’s Convention and Visitors Bureau provides event venues and promotes tourism through the operation of two county-owned facilities, the Bradenton Area Convention Center and the Powel Crosley Estate.
Both public facilities are available for rental by individuals, businesses, nonprofit organizations, and county departments.
The Crosley Estate, located on the Sarasota Bay in southern Manatee County, is closed to the public except during its once-a-year limited open house event. Otherwise, the property is available only by appointment or reservation.
Crosley is a desirable photography destination and a very popular wedding venue. Rates for rental vary depending on the type of event and duration, ranging from $200 up to $10,000 or more for specific holidays or additional hours.
Policies regarding the operation and rental, including all rental fees, of the county’s convention center and the Crosley Estate are set by resolution adopted and approved by the Board of County Commissioners.
According to details provided in the investigative report produced by the Inspector General, Manatee County CVB employee Mitch Conner was first employed by the CVB in 2019, and each of the positions he has held within the department has been at a management and/or supervisory level.
An anonymous complaint lodged with the IG last year alleged that Conner used his access as an employee to hold an unscheduled family photo shoot at the Crosley Estate in November 2024.
A preliminary review to establish the validity of the allegation revealed that social media accounts associated with Conner and his wife had publicly shared multiple family photos that appeared to be taken at the property. In addition, county records showed no evidence of a shoot having been scheduled or reserved by Conner, nor any county employee in the timeframe.
According to the report, in August 2024, while serving as CVB’s Venue Operations Manager, Conner received an interim assignment as CVB manager, the position directly above his position at that time.
Conner served as interim manager until December 2024, before being fully promoted to the CVB manager position on December 28, 2024.
As interim manager, Conner was responsible for overseeing the operations of the Crosley Estate and convention center. These responsibilities included scheduling events, negotiating contracts, and “maximizing the use of the facilities for the benefit of the community.”
In November, while serving in the interim role, Conner arranged a private family photo shoot for himself, his wife, and their young children at the Crosley Estate without following proper procedures, including scheduling a reservation, executing the required contract and insurance, and paying the applicable fee.
The fee for a one-hour personal photo reservation at Crosley is $200, plus tax, with a 25% discount available to Manatee County residents.
At the time of the unauthorized and undocumented photo session, Conner was receiving a 10% pay increase for his temporary assignment as CVB Manager.
As part of its investigation, the Inspector General interviewed Conner in July 2025 and was able to establish that the employee had a clear understanding of the rules and procedures for scheduling events at CVB facilities.
“Moreover,” reads the investigative report, “regarding employee rentals of the facility, Mr. Conner acknowledged that employees are not afforded any special privileges with respect to renting the facility privately for their own use. Furthermore, he confirmed that he signs the license agreements for BACC and Crosley Estate event rentals, and he did so as Interim CVB Manager as well.”
Conner admitted that the photo session took place and confirmed to investigators that he knowingly did not pay the use fee, secure the required insurance, or receive approval from the department director.
The photographer hired for the photoshoot told investigators that when she arrived to conduct the shoot on November 26, 2024, at approximately 4:30 p.m., the gate to the Crosley Estate was locked, and upon contacting Conner’s wife, Mr.Conner met her at the gate to let her in.
When investigators asked the employee why he did not pay the required fee to the county for the use of the facility, Conner reportedly told investigators that it was a “lapse of judgment” on his part.
Based on all facts uncovered through the investigation, the Inspector General concluded that Conner’s actions had violated the policies of County Resolution R-23-066, Section X of the county’s Personnel Policy, Rules and Procedures Manual, which incorporates the Florida Statutes, and the county’s ACE principles—Accountability, Civility, and Ethics.
Florida’s Code of Ethics for Public Officers and Employees, specifically F.S. Section 112.313, Misuse of Public Position, states, “No public officer, employee of an agency, or local government attorney shall corruptly use or attempt to use his or her official position or any property or resource which may be within his or her trust, or perform his or her official duties, to secure a special privilege, benefit, or exemption for himself, herself, or others.”
“In addition,” said the report, “as the required rental fee was not paid to the county, these actions could be considered theft under Florida Statute 812.014(1).”
Based on the results of its investigation, the Inspector General recommended that Conner be required to pay the reservation fee for the use of the facility and that disciplinary actions be considered for any violations of Florida Statutes, county resolutions, and policies.
The report noted that county administration concurred with the Inspector General’s recommendations, and on September 15, 2025, Conner—who is a county resident—submitted payment to the county at the resident-discounted rental rate of $150 plus tax.
County administration further advised the Inspector General that the incident would be addressed during the employee’s upcoming performance evaluation, which would be included in his personnel file.
A GIS Organizational Chart publicly accessible through the county’s website showed the employee remained in his role as CVB manager as of Friday afternoon.
Reached for comment on the investigation, a representative for the county stated that the administration was unable to offer any details regarding disciplinary actions or comment further on a personnel matter of this nature.
Click here to read the full investigative report, dated September 18, 2025.
METV Non-Profit Funding Investigation
METV produces and airs educational, community, and cultural programs of specific interest and benefit to Manatee County residents, including live and pre-recorded broadcasts of local government meetings.
Manatee County Government has contracted with METV for the broadcast of its board meetings as well as original programming related to government news, events, and services for more than 25 years.
In April, the Manatee County Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller's Division of Inspector General received an anonymous complaint alleging that METV lost its non-profit status in February of 2023 but continued to submit invoices to Manatee County Government, fraudulently claiming to be a valid non-profit.
According to the complainant, METV had been paid over $300,000 “under false pretenses” of being a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, when it was not.
However, investigators with the Inspector General found that while it was accurate that METV had temporarily had its non-profit status revoked, it was later retroactively reinstated to the date of revocation.
As for METV receiving payment under the pretense of claiming to be a non-profit during the period when its status was inactive, investigators uncovered that a nonprofit status was not a required provision of the existing funding agreement with the county.
The investigation found that while in the years before 2023, the county had utilized a Non-Profit Agency Agreement (NPA), this agreement form was replaced, and funding support was provided with a one-page funding letter signed by the county administrator and the METV manager.
Unlike an NPA, the funding letter is not a multi-page contract with stipulations and protections, nor does it include other provisions such as termination, insurance, licenses, required monthly reports from the vendor for services provided, or other obligations and conditions.
Investigators were unable to determine the cause of the contract format change, as all staff involved at the time are no longer employed with METV or the county.
Though non-profit status was not a requirement to receive payment, invoices submitted by METV to the county included a statement declaring the organization a 501(c)(3). This discrepancy may have been the basis for the individual deciding to take action by filing an anonymous complaint with the Inspector General.
Per the investigative report, a review of METV’s invoices found that, “...the invoices included the statement, METV is a 501(c)(3) Non-Profit organization.”
The report continues, “Although METV’s tax-exempt status was temporarily revoked for the period 2/15/2023 through 3/24/2025, it was determined that neither the master agreement and funding letters for MGA-TV, nor the funding letters for the community programming services, which were in place during the time of the revocation, included a provision that METV maintain IRS tax-exempt status. METV did provide services to the County during the revocation period, and as the agreements did not require them to maintain tax-exempt status, misstating or misrepresenting their tax-exempt status on the invoices would not impact payment.”
When investigators interviewed METV station manager, Chris Dolan, about the revocation, Dolan acknowledged the IRS had taken the action, and that it had done so prior to his becoming station manager.
Dolan stated that a change in accountants led to the lapse in 990 filings, and that he personally was unaware the non-profit status had been revoked until just before taking over as station manager in June 2024. Dolan told investigators that upon assuming the role of station manager, he began the process of having the tax-exempt status reinstated.
When Dolan became aware in October 2024 that the organization’s invoices included language about its 501(c)(3) status, he had that statement removed, he told investigators.
An IRS reinstatement letter corroborated Dolan’s efforts at the reinstatement, verifying that the non-profit status was returned, retroactively, to the date of revocation. In addition, county records showed that the reference to METV’s non-profit status no longer appeared on invoices beginning in October 2024.
Although the Inspector General’s investigation did not find that METV received payment inappropriately, it did conclude that the one-page funding letter being utilized to date to support the program is “inadequate.”
According to the report, the county’s purchasing official agrees with this assessment, having confirmed to investigators that the current one-page funding letters are valid contracts, but a new formal contract “would be prudent.”
The recommendations to the county administration by the Inspector General include that the county attorney’s office should be consulted to draft a new, more appropriate agreement with METV.
The report notes that Manatee County Administration communicated that it “takes the findings of the investigation seriously” and the county will develop a new standardized NPA contract for METV by December 31, 2025.
Click here to read the full investigative report dated September 12, 2025.
To learn more about the Manatee County Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller's Division of Inspector General, visit www.manateeclerk.com/departments/inspector-general.
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David Daniels
A "lapse of judgement?" Seriously? This was a planned event that brought in his whole family. Nobody should be surprised, however. Mr. Connor fits right in under the Bishop administration. Bishop once awarded a no-bid county contract to his girlfriend. Bishop also used his position to call in a Chicago politics type favor, phoning the Bradenton Beach Mayor and asking him to call to the owner of the Daiquiri Deck so Bishop's party would not have to wait in line. Bishop lied to the board and the entire county when he orchestrated the fraud falsely claiming that removing wetland buffers was a "county-initiated" proposal - even spending taxpayer funds to hire Carlos Beruff's consultant to make the presentation to the board while silencing the county's own environmental expert staff. Bishop allowed a county code enforcement supervisor to order an officer(over the radio) to remove a Hell No KVO sign from private property, which was an illegal act. Only the officer was disciplined, not the supervisor. Bishop promoted dirty cop felon Tom Wooten to run Code Enforcement, allowing the department be KVO's personal police force, a violation of county policy. For over a year, Bishop violated county policy by using his personal cell phone to text county business, with the purpose of avoiding public records law. Bishop's missing texts were part of the public records lawsuit in which the county was found in violation of the law and ordered to pay $75K. Bishop was informed, and shown emails confirming that Shelter manager Sarah Brown asked that a 2022 county shelter evaluation report conducted by the Univ of Florida be provided by phone with the stated purpose of avoiding a public record that could be "used as a weapon" to criticize her. Charlie Bishop, who is responsible for BoCC meeting agendas, deceivingly slipped (or allowed his deputy to do so) approval of a controversial University Pkwy roundabout contract on the consent agenda so that residents would not have a chance to object. Under Bishop, Carlos Beruff was approved to build dwelling units on his (Beruff's) personal property that violated building codes. Our County Administration can't be trusted to do the right thing when no one is looking. Mr. Connor has a bright future in Manatee County under Charlie Bishop. The fish rots from the head.
Sunday, September 28, 2025 Report this
Debann
Couldn't agree more David Daniels...There's several that have a job with the county that should have been dismissed...Bishop to start Depol...county attorney is another..one hand pats the other..The only thing that is different is the players...Same CRAP
Sunday, September 28, 2025 Report this
Bill
A "lapse of judgement?" , this employee needs to be terminated and charged for whatever research time it cost the taxpayers for this investigation.
Monday, September 29, 2025 Report this