Scott Ochoa was the City Manager at the time of the City of Ontario’s alleged retaliation against City Auditor Brad Neumann. On December 12, 2023, Ochoa authorized the retaliatory action to place Neumann on paid administrative leave. This action followed a conversation between Ochoa and City Attorney Ruben Duran of the law firm Best Best & Krieger (BB&K).
Ochoa had been explicitly informed of the issue: he was copied on Neumann’s formal Notification of Request for Resolution of Disagreement, which stated that an executive directive would violate professional audit standards if followed. Rather than follow the procedure outlined by the City itself—where the Internal Audit Committee is responsible for resolving such disagreements—Ochoa bypassed the process and removed the auditor from his role. This decision not only silenced protected whistleblower activity, but also represented a clear dereliction of duty in his role as a member of the Internal Audit Committee.